A 17th-century Dutch Handpainted Tile Depicting a Soldier With Musket

This is a Delft tile that dates to circa 1630-1650. It is finely decorated with an image of a soldier with a musket painted in blue with the ox head motif in the corners.

~ Dimensions ~

The tile is 4.9 inches (12.5cm) wide by 4.9 inches (12.5cm) tall by 0.4 inches (1cm) deep. The total weight is 290 grams.

~ Condition ~

The condition of the tile is decent for its age. It has big chip to the left top corner and numerous smaller chips all around the edge.

~ Dutch Tiles History ~

Dutch ornamental tiles were created in the 16th Century. The first use of wall tiles was probably in areas where dampness and dirt were worse and the earliest wall tiles were used mainly as baseboards, then other wall areas also began to be tiled... within the hearth and alongside it, on corridor walls and other places where one was likely to brush against whitewash.

Dutch tiles are commonly referred to as "Delft", this is merely a generic designation. Although tiles were made in the town of Delft, they were also manufactured in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Harlingen, Makkum, Haarlem, Leiden, and other Dutch towns. These tiles are in patterns of blue and white and polychrome, but also in purple and white (manganese), which were made in Rotterdam and other towns. Tiles can depict a wide variety of subjects, from the most simple figure or tree to a complicated landscape or figural motif.

Item ID: 266