A small 3.5m2 antique Perrusson floor - 1915

A handmade French ceramic tile with its original same size and half size borders, the floor appears in the 1915 Carrelages Perrusson Fils et Desfontaines catalogue and on the final restoration reveals crisp vibrant colours and a beautiful antique patina with occasional groutable chips and edge nibbles. 

Total surface area - 3.5m2+ / 37.8 sq ft+

Country of Origin - France

Manufacturer - Carrelages Perrusson Fils & Desfontaines, Ecuisses 

Dating - 1915

Tile size - 17cm / 6.7 inches

Tile thickness - +/- 16mm / 6.3 inches

Weight per tile - 1.3kg / 46 ounces

Border lay - Same size and half-sized borders

Underfloor heating systems - Yes

Indoor / Outdoor application - Both

Fixed to walls or inside showers - Yes, with the correct cement and grouts
 

Tile quantities:-

FIELD tiles - 70 - 2m2 / 21.8 sq ft.

LARGE BORDER - 36 - 1m2 / 10.9 sq ft. or 6.1 linear metres / 20 linear ft.

HALF-SIZED BORDER- 40 - 0.6m2 / 6.2 sq ft. or 6.8 linear metres / 22.3 linear ft.

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.

Perrusson - a brief history...

Jean-Marie Perrusson was not only known for ceramic tile production but also for the production of bricks and roof tiles. Many of the lozenge-themed terracotta mechanical tiles in Burgundy bear the Perrusson hallmark. He built his first brick-making factory in 1860 and started mechanical tile production in 1863, to which he added a workshop for manufacturing ceramic tiles in 1875. Further expansion of the ceramic tile production in the Saône-et-Loire was initiated (in Saint-Julien-sur-Dheune in 1866, St. Pantaleon 1870), and even beyond the department (in Sancoins Cher in 1870 and Fontafié in Charente in 1878).

The company was renamed ‘Perrusson Fils & Desfontaines’ in 1890 and the factory also manufactured architectural ceramics and statues. In April 1960, the factory finally closed its doors. The vast majority of the original buildings constructed in 1890/1900 are destroyed, with the offices, changing rooms of the factory, the concierge and the electrical workshop the only significant remnants of the site that can still be seen.

The Perrusson factory employed 40 workers in 1860, 80 by 1874, 130 in 1890, 300 at its peak in 1900, 280 in 1930 and 130 from 1945 to 1950.