A small Boch Freres ceramic 1.2m2

A small antique French Carrelages Ceramiques Boch Freres, Maubeuge floor of a principal 17cm / 6.7 inch sq field tile and its half-sized border tile. For provenance, we show the tiles in the photo gallery as displayed in the 1908 Boch Freres catalogue. The floor, in a cool palette, totals 1.2m2 / 13 sq ft. made up of 32 main field tiles and 30 half-sized borders. Only one corner tile has been recovered, but given their design it simple requires the tiler to cut at 45 degrees for the corner to rendezvous.

Suitable for a toilet, porch, bath or shower splashback or as a decorative feature on a larger floor the tiles were handmade in the early 20th century and display a rich antique patina; there are tonal variations and small chips and nibbles on some tiles, all groutable and adding to its warm patina.

Given the small size of the floor, and its weight of 55kgs / 121lbs, it is likely to only be economically viable to ship as part of a larger order.

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.