The History of Persian Tile

A question popping up might be why to choosePersian tiles. Cerampakhsh website provides a brief history of Persian tiles in order to help understand the aesthetics of Persian tile and its value throughout history. You can have a better vision of Persian tiles and Iranian products by reading the information below.

Kindly note that the website has provided a synopsis of the history of Persian tilework in order to help the general knowledge of its customers; the history has much more to tell about itself.

Persian tiles appeared in about 1200 A.D, after the conquering of Timur. The Persians were inspired by Chinese pottery to add different colors to one tile; such an inspiration gave Persian tiles an extraordinary look. It can simply be mentioned that because of Iran’s long lasted history in tiles and its mastery in The Mosaic — a design created from gluing bits of different colored tiles together and Ghlami — a technique where several colors are painted onto one tile with a brush, the country has the most beautiful tile work in the world.
Over the centuries, glazed bricks and tiles have been used to decorate palaces, mosques, monuments, mausoleums, official buildings, schools, and shops. The most incredible places which display the magic of Persian tiles are the ancient ruins at Persepolis, the gardens in Shiraz, the palaces and mosques in Isfahan, etc. Moreover, Persian Haft Rang tiles, also known as seven-colored tiles, are highly decorative glazed tiles which give an aesthetic look to both secular and religious buildings.
Upham Pope notes, “The development of colored tiles is the most important Persian achievement in architectural ornament” (43). These tiles first came to demand in the 15th century. The masters of art frequently chose to decorate them with painted designs showing plants, birds, people, and calligraphy.

The Prior Persian Tile

One of the most important elements used in Persian architecture is tilework. The tilework has gifted a unique and charming outlook to the region’s buildings. The oldest example of tilework is Chogha Zanbil, an ancient Elamite temple complex near Susa which can be dated back to the 13th century. The same technique of tilework was also used during the Achaemenid empire in the palaces of Susa and Persepolis. However, it ought to be noted that it was during the Islamic period that Persian tilework achieved its full potentials. Artists started exploring numerous ways and designs to elevate this art; they modified the shapes, the designs, and thickness of the tiles.

Development in Tilework from the 15th century to the Qajar era

During the Timurid and Safavid dynasties, in the late 15th and 16th centuries, a new technique in tilework appeared to replace the widely used technique of mosaic faience which had advanced progressively. The mosaic faience was formed by following a series of steps which consisted of designing a pattern to the exact scale, specifying and firing the colors separately, and cutting the tiles into small units which would then be arranged according to the design, and finally the design was covered with a layer of plaster to hold the whole piece together.
Since the process of mosaic faience was time consuming and expensive, a new technique was developed which was both cheaper and faster to work with; the Haft Rang tile. With this new technique, there was no need to create the design out of pieces of cut tile or to create a preparatory drawing to exact scale, because the artist was able to paint directly on the tile itself.
It must be mentioned that because the Haft Rang tiles were directly plastered onto the walls, in comparison to mosaic faience, they were more disposed to damage over time. This technique lasted until the Qajar dynasty but slowly faded into the background during the later years of this period.

Getting to know the art of tiling in Iran

With the growth in global interactions during the Qajar dynasty, Persian art was influenced by European style and techniques. Technological developments made various forms of tile decoration possible, over-glazed painted tilework was mostly a trend. The tilework had a great impact on the decoration of both religious and secular architecture. One of the most frequently employed techniques at the time was polychrome ceramic tilework, mainly produced in Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan.
Three basic techniques were used in building decorations: mosaic with geometrical designs worked in square or rectangular pieces of turquoise, white, yellow, and black tile; over-glazed-painted Cuerda Seca with increasingly elaborate patterns painted in a vivid palette of pink, purple, yellow, shades of blue, green, and orange in a meticulous enameled style; and underglaze painting, with a more subtle arrangement of colors modified by the use of black for shading and outlining, used only from about 1880 onward. Tilework was used to emphasize structure. This is particularly noticeable in religious architecture, where bands and panels of tilework decorated the entrance and ayvāns of mosques.

It is understood that Persian tile work has influenced the aesthetic of architecture and construction throughout the world by developing from glazed bricks to mosaic faience, luster, and the seven-colored tiles. Persian history of tilework played an important role in forming some of the now most widely used tile work techniques. Iran has a great history in tilework and ceramic; and most importantly, the country has updated its tile industry by not only being creative in tile making throughout history but also by being inspired by the beauties and aesthetics of different arts in the world. Iran’s tile and ceramic industry is growing day by day by having more than 134 valuable manufactures which use the latest technologies and specialized workplace for the production of variety of products.