The Continental stove-tile fragments from St Mary Graces, London, in their British and European context

Abstract

AbstractDuring excavations by the Museum of London on the site of St Mary Graces, London, a quantity of stove-tile fragments were found in the Dissolution and later deposits. Three fabric types are present, one tin-glazed and two lead-glazed, with sufficient fragments of each type to permit a hypothetical reconstruction of an entire stove. In all a minimum of twenty-five tiles is represented. Due to the international importance of these finds, they are discussed here in advance of the final excavation report, both within the context of the site itself, and in the wider social and art-historical context of the European tile-stove tradition. The tile fragments are also discussed with regard to their dating and origin, the conclusions drawn being backed up by scientific analyses which show that the tin-glazed tiles are almost certainly from the Netherlands; as such they form a hitherto unrecognized element of the early tin-glazed wares produced in the Low Countries. The lead-glazed tiles could also have been...