'Westminster' tiles - named after Westminster Abbey where they were first recognised - are among the most common types of medieval floor tiles found in London and can be distinguished from other medieval floor tiles by their size, poor quality and the clay used in their manufacture. Another distinctive feature is their unusually wide distribution - ranging from Canterbury in Kent to Croxden Abbey, Staffordshire - which may reflect the movement of tiles or the work of itinerant tilemakers. Over 160 different designs were produced, ranging from knights on horseback, heraldic shields, mythical beasts and fleurs-de-lis to abstract geometric designs. This Monograph includes an illustrated catalogue giving the provenance of each design, together with the plain-glazed examples.

Beschrijving, gebaseerd op objecten uit de collecties van het British Museum te Londen.

This study of the design, manufacture and use of medieval floor tiles shows the long-lasting influence achieved in the north of England, especially by the Cistercian monasteries. It serves to demonstrate how these monastic houses made use of the resources and contacts available to them. The study focuses on one of the richest medieval floor tile assemblages in the world, with material from 118 sites. Over 500 different designs and 60 mosaic arrangements have been identified. Jennie Stopford examines the monastic influence on northern England's manufacture and use of floor tiles. Split into three sections - Chronological Survey, The Tile Groups, and The Sites and Collections - this in-depth study covers an immense body of work. Contents include: a view of the world - plain mosaic floor tiles and the Cistercians, c.1230-1270; long distance supply and personalised designs, c.1350; standardisation - plain-glazed tiles; the plain tile mosaic group, c.1220-1270; inferior quality plain mosaic, later 13th century; the decorated mosaic tile group, c.1300; parallels to the decorated mosaic tile group, possibly c.1300; the Nottinghamshire tile group, c.1325-1365; fourteenth-century copies; the plain-glazed tile groups; small assemblages dating from the 14th or 15th centuries; the Transpennine tile group, later 15th century; the Huby/Percy tile group, c.1500.

While visual cultures mingled comfortably along the silk roads and on the shores of the Mediterranean, medieval England has sometimes been viewed – by both medieval and more recent writers – as isolated. In this Element the author introduces new evidence to show that this understanding of medieval England's visual relationship to the rest of the world demands revision. An international team led by the author has completed a digital reconstruction of the so-called Chertsey combat tiles (sophisticated pictorial floor tiles made c. 1250, England), including both images and lost Latin texts. Grounded in the discoveries made while completing this reconstruction, the author proposes new conclusions regarding the historical circumstances within which the Chertsey tiles were commissioned and their significant connections with global textile traditions.

A comprehensive, full-color exploration of tile art and production worldwide, from earliest times to the present day. The book is both an authoritative work of reference and a visual delight, ranging from ancient Greece, where the first fired roof tiles date from as early as the third millennium BC, to twentieth-century Mexico. Along the way we encounter stunning examples of the tiler's art: the enormous English medieval floor pavements from Byland Abbey and Clarendon Palace; figural tiles from China, intended to adorn roofs and ward off evil; the famous Iznik tiles from the Islamic world, with their richly decorative patterns; the highly stylised ceramic tiles of the Arts and Crafts movement; and the tiles created by some of the finest ceramic artists and potters of the twenty-first century. Placing the tiles firmly in their historical and cultural context, the book highlights both continuity and diversity, the dissemination of techniques and designs, and how tile art in one time and place has inspired and rejuvenated those in others. Tiles are also studied in terms of function as well as form, and the full range of architectural and practical purposes for which they have been used - from floors to roofs, stoves to bathrooms, cathedrals to metro stations - will be explored, along with the various techniques employed to create such versatile pieces. 5000 Years of Tiles is the essential, most comprehensive single volume for anyone interested in the ceramic, decorative, and architectural arts.

The Middle Ages are all around us in Britain. The Tower of London and the castles of Scotland and Wales are mainstays of cultural tourism and an inspiring cross-section of later medieval finds can now be seen on display in museums across England, Scotland, and Wales. Medieval institutions from Parliament and monarchy to universities are familiar to us and we come into contact with the later Middle Ages every day when we drive through a village or town, look up at the castle on the hill, visit a local church or wonder about the earthworks in the fields we see from the window of a train. The Oxford Handbook of Later Medieval Archaeology in Britain provides an overview of the archaeology of the later Middle Ages in Britain between AD 1066 and 1550. 61 entries, divided into 10 thematic sections, cover topics ranging from later medieval objects, human remains, archaeological science, standing buildings, and sites such as castles and monasteries, to the well-preserved relict landscapes which still survive. This is a rich and exciting period of the past and most of what we have learnt about the material culture of our medieval past has been discovered in the past two generations. This volume provides comprehensive coverage of the latest research and describes the major projects and concepts that are changing our understanding of our medieval heritage.

This is the third volume of Anthony Emery's magisterial survey, Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300–1500, first published in 2006. Across the three volumes Emery has examined afresh and re-assessed over 750 houses, the first comprehensive review of the subject for 150 years. Covered are the full range of leading homes, from royal and episcopal palaces to manor houses, as well as community buildings such as academic colleges, monastic granges and secular colleges of canons. This volume surveys Southern England and is divided into three regions, each of which includes a separate historical and architectural introduction as well as thematic essays prompted by key buildings. The text is complemented throughout by a wide range of plans and diagrams and a wealth of photographs showing the present condition of almost every house discussed. This is an essential source for anyone interested in the history, architecture and culture of medieval England and Wales.

This is the first book in the UK to be devoted to historic floors. It introduces an important and largely neglected subject and considers conservation methods in a European context. It traces the history of some of the great floors of Europe from the fourth century B.C. and outlines the development of mosaic, tiles, marble and parquetry floors in secular buildings. The early Christian pavements in basilicas, temples and cathedrals, the creation of medieval tiles, ledger stones and monumental brasses, their destruction by iconoclasts and re-creation during the Gothic Revival, are also discussed. Leading authorities, archaeologists, architects and archivists consider the latest methods of recording and repairing cathedral floors, including those of cathedrals, country houses, the monumental tiled pavements of the Palace of Westminster and other public buildings. Management policies to protect outstanding floors in over-visited sites are considered and historic features particularly at risk, are identified. Urgent action is recommended to contain the damage caused by the dramatic increase in tourism throughout Europe.