A quality, period French Boch Freres ceramic - sold by m2

A fine, quality, handmade French ceramic manufactured by the multiple award-winning Ceramiques de Boch Freres, Maubeuge, France in the latter part of the 19th century. The tiles appear in the period Boch Freres catalogue, endorsing their provenance, and we include in the photo gallery scans of their original presentation along with photographs of a restored randomly selected section of the floor.

These 14.7cm / 5.75 inch field and border tiles, reclaimed from a fine period property in Brussels, Belgium, have been restored well, revealing a quality ceramic with a good slip. The palette is cool with mid-grey and mushroom present. 

There is a large quantity of tiles available, and they are sold by the m2, with 5m2 / 55 sq ft. being the minimum order quantity unless a smaller quantity required was part of a larger order and could be harmonised in the same box pallet. We have available four of the border corner tiles shown in the photo gallery, but a limitless number of border corners can easily be mitre cut by a tiler from the regular border tiles. We have simulated with a technical drawing how the tile would look and included it in the photo gallery.

The tiles are in good condition and arrive ready to relay. The randomly selected section of the floor that has been photographed is reflective of the whole surface available and, being a highly fired tile, it can be laid inside or outside the home. 

NOTE Antique tiles were most commonly made in single or two tile moulds. Before current computer automation methods their moulds were made by hand and the colour slips mixed by eye. Kiln temperatures could also be variable, as could the firing time. The result is that tiles often display subtle size and thickness variations and there can be tonal variations in colours, owing to the slip mixing and/or firing time. All of this makes these handmade tiles unique and adds to their charm. Some floors display their subtle variations in size and tones, some not, but when photographing we always take a random section of the floor so that it is representative of the whole. A tiler should always dry lay a section of the tiles to familiarise himself with them before starting to fix lay.