Medieval Floor Tiles and Wall Facing, Antique Print, 1851

This is an original antique chromolithograph, printed in flat yellow, brick red, bright green and dark brown, showing a wall facing panel and three numbered tile designs. The tall panel at the left is yellow on brick red: a band of gothic lettering across the top, a row of quatrefoil roundels, and four arched columns of crowned shields with crosses, palmettes, rosettes and smaller shields of arms, over a border of quatrefoils. At the right, numbered 13, 14 and 15, are a green on dark brown circle of leafy scroll, a yellow on red octagon enclosing four scrolled motifs, and a strip of green fleurs de lis on dark brown.

The running head reads "LE MOYEN-AGE ET LA RENAISSANCE." at the left and "FAÏENCES, PL. 5." at the right. Below the image are the credits "A. Racinet fils del.", "Chromolith. Lemercier à Paris" and "Frédéric Richter, lith.". The caption reads "CARRELAGES et REVÊTEMENT." (tiling and wall facing), followed by "F. Séré direxit". All the lettering on this plate is printed in red.

Le Moyen Âge et la Renaissance was edited by Paul Lacroix, who also wrote as the Bibliophile Jacob, with Ferdinand Séré directing the illustrations, and was published in Paris in five volumes between 1848 and 1851. Its chapters, written by a range of specialists, survey the arts, crafts, sciences and customs of Europe from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, and its plates reproduce objects, manuscripts and buildings in public and private collections of the day. This plate comes from the fourth volume, of 1851, where it accompanies the section headed "Faïences" (faience). Each tile design is drawn as a flat pattern.

The plate can be framed on its own or hung with the companion tile plate from the same section.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.