A 3.7m2 / 40 sq ft. mosaic themed ceramic tile - c.1920

A small, 3.7m2 / 40 sq ft antique ceramic floor of 14cm / 5.5 inches sq field tiles and a half-sized border tile.

For provenance, the tiles were manufactured by Gilliot Hemiksem, Belgique c.1920 we include in the photo gallery a scan from the book 'Industrial Tiles 1840-1940' showing the field tile. Popular in France in the 1920's and 1930's, the design of the floor is of a 'faux-mosaique' theme whereby solid ceramic tiles created the visual impression of the floor being comprised of tens of thousands of smaller mosaic pieces. 

The floor can be laid inside or outside the home, with possibilities including a small bathroom, an entrance porch or on the walls of a kitchen or bathroom, which could include inside a shower, as splash-backs or in an AGA or chimney inglenook. Now restored to its original beauty, it arrives ready to relay and is in excellent condition, as a randomly selected section of the floor shows in the photo gallery. 

A similar Gilliot Hemiksem floor has been laid to great creative impact by a client of ours, details of which can be found if you click here.

Tile quantities

FIELD tiles - 174 - 3.4m2 / 36.7 sq. ft.

HALF-SIZED borders - 31 plus 3 corners - 0.32m2 / 3.45 sq ft or 4.55 linear metres / 14.9 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.