The French called in ‘tuile’, in Latin it is known as ‘tegula’ whereas the English called it the simple word Tile. Tiles, are one of the many greatest product of human intelligence sought to be 4000 years old. The oldest of these tiles can be found in Babylon and Egypt. Invented for only the purpose o decoration who knew tiles will gain such increased popularity. First to be only created of ceramic or as the Greeks called it to be ‘keramos’, and as the world developed quickly, tiles were made of other materials such as stones, glass, and even steel.
The short history of tiles officially started from the Islamic empire, in Persia where tile work was perfected. The work of tiles can be increasingly found in construction of Mughal Empire. It was then bought to Spain and later it took over Europe like a rapid fire.
And as the tile business went in boom, different types of tile emerged, ceramic tiles, porcelain tiles, tiles made out of assorted stones, tiles made out of simple stone, Terracotta tiles made out of local clay, Quarry tiles made in UK from natural clay. Tiles were being used for both walls and floors and not to mention used for highly decorative purpose.
Also many different methods of decoration started to emerge ranging from simple hand painting to complex methods. Unglazed consisting of shades of clays natural color only whereas the plain glazes allowed to make tiles of artificial color. Inlaid tiles are the tiles which are stamped upon, also carved and modeled tiles. Mosaic tiles are the most used ones when it comes to decorative purposes as they consist of assorted material and can be used for creating designs and iconography. In many collages and universities through out the world, tile hand painting is encouraged.
With regards to our today’s expensive and convenient world, the demand for tile work has decreased dramatically and little work which is left is for the rich. In today’s recession, other alternatives such as wall papers seem a rather easier way of decoration of walls the use of wall papers is not only easy but is relatively cheap. This has automatically affected the tile international market and the workers who make these tiles. Perhaps it is the modern technology steadily taking over historical inventions such as tiles or it is the increase of global recession. But gradually, many of world’s treasured items of art such as tiles are facing the dilemma of being slowly lost over a period of time. And though the tile work and decoration, maybe perfectly preserved in buildings and history, they very much face the challenge of making through future.
Different Methods Of Decorating Tiles