A grand, Boch Freres floor - to 81m2 / 872 sq ft c.1881-1900

Reclaimed from a church in the Brussels, Belgium suburbs these rare ceramic tiles were manufactured by Carrelages Ceramiques Boch Freres Maubeuge, Nord, France between 1881 and 1900. One by one these 17cm square handmade tiles have had their old mortar and joints removed and years of dirt from their faces cleaned. They arrive ready to relay and once again, as the photographs in the gallery show, reveal their original quality and beauty. 

The floor totals an impressive 81m2 / 872 sq ft* 

*There could be the possibility to sell a section of the floor, as long as the ratio of border tiles to field tiles in an order stays at its current ratio. A minimum order possible would be 15m2 / 160 sq ft.

Some tiles display small defaults, like edge nibbles and small chips, but all are groutable.  Weighing in at 1.4kgs / 3lbs each, these are a quality, award-winning period ceramic from the belle epoque. 

Included in the gallery are scans from the period Boch Freres catalogues in our possession showing the tiles as they were presented in the late 19th and early 20th century and we also include some photographs from inside the church showing the floor pre-lifting and restoring.

Owing to their original setting the scale is impressive and the triple border tiles framing the floor total 51cm/ 20 inches in width. The principal field tiles, opening up their regal design in a tessellation of four tiles, are framed by these same size borders which comprise of an exterior band border and a double laid back-to-back border of one left and one right facing tile.

The total surface area of the church was over 800m2 / 8,600 sq ft with this specific floor covering c.10% of the area. In addition to this floor, another exquisite Boch Freres floor has been reclaimed from the church and totals 78.5m2 / 845 sq ft. Details of the floor can be found if you click here.

This is a large, rare, handmade ceramic ideally suited domestically to a fine Maison Maitre but opportunities also exist for it to be a statement piece in a restaurant, hotel or retail environment.

We can also assist in looking at the potential lay of the floor in your chosen area(s) with the production of computerised floor plans.

*We have mistakenly laid the border series incorrectly in the photographs. The plain grey border should in fact be the internal border which rendezvous with the field tiles. The Boch Freres catalogue (photo 25) shows the correct lay. Our apologies.

Tile quantities, give or take one or two:-

FIELD TILES – 1,650 tiles – 47.7m2 / 513.4 sq ft

LARGE Plain-grey BORDERS - 325 tiles plus 2 corners – 9.4m2 / 101.2 sq ft. – 55.3 linear metres / 181 linear ft.

LARGE Ornate BORDERS - 816 tiles (408 left, 408 right) plus 2 external & 4 internal corners – 23.9m2 / 257.5 sq ft. – 69 linear metres / 226 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 often tiles 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.