What is a ceramic encaustic tile?

Encaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colours of clay. They are often of two colours but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The pattern is inlaid into the body of the tile, so as the tile is worn down the design remains. Encaustic tiles may be glazed or unglazed and the inlay may be as shallow as 2 to 3 millimetres, as is often the case with "printed" encaustic tiles from the later medieval period, or as deep as 7 millimetres. What were called encaustic tiles in the Victorian era were originally called inlaid tiles during the medieval period. The use of the word "encaustic" to describe an inlaid tile of two or more colours is technically incorrect. The word encaustic means "burning in" from the Greek en "in" and kaiein "to burn". The term originally described a process of painting with a bees-wax based paint that was then fixed with heat. It was also applied to a process of medieval ...  more

Encaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colours of clay. They are often of two colours but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The pattern is inlaid into the body of the tile, so as the tile is worn down the design remains. Tile_edge Encaustic tiles may be glazed or unglazed and the inlay may be as shallow as 2 to 3 millimetres, as is often the case with "printed" encaustic tiles from the later medieval period, or as deep as 7 millimetres. What were called encaustic tiles in the Victorian era were originally called inlaid tiles during the medieval period. The use of the word "encaustic" to describe an inlaid tile of two or more colours is technically incorrect. The word encaustic means "burning in" from the Greek en "in" and kaiein "to burn". The term originally described a process of painting with a bees-wax based paint that was then fixed with heat. It was also applied to a process of ...