In the mid-nineteenth century, when the new wave of archaeology swept the country, enthusiasts began to discover the sites of the old kilns, and to examine and record the designs of surviving medieval tiles in cathe- drals and churches. Furthermore, in 1843 Prince Albert was present at a soirée at the home of the Marquis of Northampton, at which a revival of the technique was demonstrated. Soon afterwards its author, Herbert Minton, was commissioned to exercise his skills in tiling floors at Osborne, Isle of Wight, the summer residence of Queen Victoria. Born in 1793, Herbert was the son of Thomas Minton, whose business he had joined in 1817; by 1828 he had become interested in reviving this lost craft: the company were soon foremost in producing large quantities of tiles, and for a rapidly growing market further stimulated by the work of the most prominent architects, among them Augustus W.N. Pugin. [Insall 194]
Vessels
- Japanese Boatmen
- Jardinieres decorated in imitation of cloisonné
- Bone china ovoid vase in the pseudo-cloisonné style
- Stork
- Peacock
- Japanese Boatmen
- Majolica bas relief tiles in the V & A’s Gamble Room
- Game Pie
- The St George Fountain at the Great Exhibition of 1851
- The Dairy at Windsor castle
Parian Ware
Tiles
- Encaustic floor tiles, Church of St. Augustine Queen's Gate
- Fleur de lis floor tiles, St. Augustine's
- Floor tiles near altar, St. Augustine's
- Encaustic floor tiles in aisle, St. Augustine's
- Encaustic tile (1), St. David’s
- Encaustic tile (2), St. David’s
- Encaustic tile (3), St. David’s
- Encaustic tiles
- Encaustic tiles
- Four Tiles (1851 Art-Journal)
- Four Tiles (1851 Art-Journal)
- Two Tiles (1851 Art-Journal)
- Encaustic Tiles (1851 Art-Journal)
- Encaustic Tiles (1851 Art-Journal)
- Red, blue and gold floral design, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Blue fleur-de-lys tile, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Edging tiles for tile pavement, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Red and blue tiling pattern, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Tiling with inset memorial to Herbert Minton, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Tiling in situ on steps up to chancel, St Catherine's, Barmby Moor
- Chapter House, York Minster (shows tiles in situ)
- Red and yellow tiles with fleur-de-lys pattern at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow design with the Minster's cross-keys motif (1) at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow design with the Minster's cross-keys motif (2) at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow geometric designs at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow grapevine design at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow tiles, foliate and geometric design at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow tiling with borders (1) at the Chapter House
- Red and yellow tiling with borders (2) at the Chapter House
- Tiling at St Andrew's Church, East Heslerton, N. Yorkshire
- Tiled floor at St George's Hall, Liverpool
- Tile panel, The Seven Ages of Man, designed by Henry Stacy Marks
- Circular Plaque ("Sans Everything"), from The Seven Ages of Man, designed by Henry Stacy Marks
Related material: Medieval exemplars that Minton imitated
![St. David’s Cathedral, Wales [detail]](14e.jpg){kind=link}
Bibliography
Insall, Donald. "Historic Floors at Risk: St George's Hall, Liverpool." Historic Floors: Their Care and Conservation. Edited by Jane Fawcett. Oxford: Butterworth/Heinemann, in association with ICOMOS UK, 2001. 194-97.
Majolica Mania: Transatlantic Pottery in England and the United States, 1850–1915. Ed. Susan Weber, with Catherine Arbuthnott, Jo Briggs, Eleanor Hughes, Earl Martin, and Laura Microulis. 3 vols. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2021. [Review]
“On Encaustic Tiles.” Art Journal (1851): 146-47, 176-77, 220-21, 261. Hathi Trust Digital Library version of a copy in the University of Michigan Library. Web. 28 July 2013. [Complete text in the Victorian Web.
Pearson, Lynn. Tile Gazetteer: A Guide to British Tile and Architectural Ceramics Locations. Tiles and Architectural Ceramics Society, 2005.
Last modified 23 April 2022