The Tring Tiles
- Gallery: Room 40
- Culture: Late Medieval
- Made in: Tring (?)
- Date: 14thC
- Object type: tile
- Materials: earthenware
- Museum number: 1922,0412.5.CR
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
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About this object
Before you is "The Tring Tiles," a set of late medieval earthenware tiles adorned with intricate designs. Each tile features scenes from the apocryphal childhood stories of Christ, illustrating episodes like the cart ride with Saint Joseph and a depiction of harvest. The tiles were part of a frieze, likely used for decoration in a church in Tring, Hertfordshire.
These tiles were crafted using sgraffito, a technique in which white slip was laid over red clay, then a stylus was used to scratch through to the clay underneath, creating patterns and figures. Afterward, excess white slip was carefully gouged away to leave crisp imagery. Details of similar designs are found in a manuscript at Oxford's Bodleian Library, suggesting shared artistic inspiration.
Made in the 14th century, the tiles reflect an era when these religious stories were deeply cherished. Despite being fragile and requiring precise handwork, they offer a rare and vivid glimpse into medieval craftsmanship and devotion.
See it in person
The Tring Tiles is on display in Room 40 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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