This handicraft demands a rare command of clay, pigment and fire, where a small shift in timing or temperature can change everything.

In the era of Thibaut IV, the great medieval fairs of the Champagne region became the cradle of a decorative art that soon travelled across Christendom. Fed by alluvial deposits shaped over centuries, artisans, craftsmen and labourers found the raw material they needed to give full rein to the imagination.

To produce tiles of high aesthetic value for cathedrals and noble houses, they developed a technique akin to engraving, carving and defining a motif before firing so it would read with clarity and authority.

From there, the medieval world was replicated in clay: the bestiary of farms and forests, heraldic symbols and crests, climbing vines and botanical forms, and a repertoire of geometric shapes designed to interlock into larger patterns.

De Ferranti has also developed a marbled tile influenced by this period, echoing the depth, irregularity and quiet drama of aged surfaces.