10.75m2+ / 115 sq ft antique ceramic Chimay floor with triple borders

One of two antique ceramic encaustic floors recently reclaimed from the same house in southern Belgium and now professionally cleaned, arriving ready to relay. The tiles were manufactured by Produits Ceramiques de St Remy, Chimay. Chimay being a Walloon municipality of some 9,000 inhabitants famous for its ceramic tile and Trappist beer making traditions (the Monastery of Scourmont Abbey in the town has been producing beer since 1862). Produits Ceramiques de St Remy in Chimay was established in 1898 and were absorbed into a larger group some time in the 1920s.

Both the principal field tile and same size border tile are 15cm square and the large border is framed top and bottom by a half size border tile. The tile tessellation centers around a styalised circular motif, which in design appears to borrow from more of an English gothic tradition than French or Belgian. As a consequence it is bold and strongly navigational though the palette is cool. The tile surfaces, which show no wear beyond occasional groutable edge nibbles on some tiles has cleaned superbly; this is a heavy and quality ceramic, an outstanding floor in superb condition, handmade in small batches.

Tile quantities, give or take one or two:-

Main field tiles - 277 - 6.25m2

Large Borders - 106 plus 4 corners - 2.5m2 or 16.5 linear metres / 54 linear feet

Small Borders - 176 plus 9 corners - 2m2 or 26.4 linear metres / 86.6 linear feet (halve the linear length for a duplicate lay as shown in the photographs)