Ceramics home: Decorative tiles.

Decorative tiles

In the early medieval period tiles were largely used in religious establishments - churches and monastaries. The tiles were handmade, moulded to give a design, and glazed. The tiles were very thick, as they were used as floor rather than wall tiles.

Ceramic tiles were also used to line stoves designed to heat the rooms of large houses. These stoves were a status symbol, and the tiles that covered them were therefore highly decorated. The tiles show human and animal figures, floral designs, and also the crests or initials of the house owner. They were usually glazed with a green glaze.

From the end of the sixteenth century, tin-glazed wall tiles were being produced. The tin glaze gave an opaque white colour, which could be painted with a variety of bright colours, although chiefly blue. The tiles were sometimes painted to give larger panels, making up a large picture. Individual tiles frequently feature biblical scenes.

Featured types

Medieval floor tiles (1066 - 1485)

Stove tiles (1500 - 1700)

Tin-glazed tiles (1570 - 1850)

Related objects

There are 327 related objects.

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P232 tile; tegula. Roman	2001.61/12 tile. Late Medieval; 14th century	84.8/1 tile. Medieval; 13th-14th century	NN13078f tile. 1881-1920
NN13078e tile. 1881-1920	NN13078d tile. 1881-1920	NN13078c tile. 1881-1920	NN13078b tile. 1881-1920
NN13078a tile. 1881-1920	L146/53 tile; delft tile. 1726-1766	NN15813 tile. 1901-2000	NN15812 tile. 1901-2000
NN15811 tile. 1901-2000	NN15810 tile. 1901-2000	26122 tile. 1545-1570	24004 tile. 1571-1615
16024 tile. 1566-1635	16022 tile. 1571-1615	13475 tile. 1571-1615	11930 tile. 1570-1650
11757c tile. 1571-1615	Z3382 tile. 1636-1665	26107 tile; terracotta? tile. 1501-1800	23576 tile. 1801-1900?

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