Antique American Stove Tiles

Keeping the home warm in the late 1800′s was a full time job. If you were lucky you had coal delivered then spent hours shoveling it into your furnace. If you weren’t so lucky you had to cut down trees, split wood, let it season, and feed the iron stoves in each room that needed heat . The stove was the gathering spot and focal point in the home, always being cared for, keeping the family warm and fed with hot food.

Some stoves were decorated with tiles inset into cast iron frames. The ceramic nature of the tiles lent itself perfectly to the use in stoves. They could be colorful and remain durable, impervious to the intense heat to which they were exposed. Often the images on the tiles depicted portraits, some dressed in warm winter clothes. Other common images were people tending to fires or gathering kindling.

How can you tell the difference between an antique stove tile and other antique tiles? Stove tiles commonly have a small flattened rim surrounding tile. This acted as a flange to hold the tile into the frame. They also commonly have an arched cutout in this rim which most likely helped in setting tile.

You can find these tiles and more for sale at BungalowBILL.com

San Jose Pottery Cowboy Tiles

Even as an adult each Christmas I think back to the toys I had as a child. I remember fondly the suede cowboy jacket with the fringe I got from my aunt Helen when I was 5, or the numerous shiny cap guns and holsters. Yes, I still want to be a cowboy. Not a real cowboy. They work too hard. I want to be one of those singing dude ranch cowboys, dressed in fancy clean cowboy clothes and slowly riding a friendly horse. ( Yeah, I’m from New Jersey. That’s about as cowboy as I can get)

These vintage San Jose tiles remind me of those happy cowboy movies of the 1930′s – 40′s. Simplistic and colorful, the tiles give a romantic version of the West. The tiles are in their original custom made blonde wood frames. The glazing is spot on with no runs often seen in the larger 8 inch San Jose tiles. They make a perfect accent to a cowboy or cowgirl themed room, a ranch with Molesworth or Monterey furniture, or the advanced collector of San Jose.

You can find these tiles for sale at BungalowBILL.com

Johann von Schwarz Tile by Carl Luber

I first became aware of Johann von Schwarz tiles from a friend and antique tile collector from Germany, who later went on to write the book “Carl Sigmund Luber, His Life and Work as Artist for the Art Nouveau Ceramics of Johann von Schwarz 1896-1906”. Not only did Wolfgang Konig produce a book extensively filled with beautiful images of the tiles and how they were used, he also provided all the information in both German AND English.

The Pre-Raphaelite images of pretty young women are the most sought after items of the Art Nouveau wares produced by the Nuremberg company, and the technique used to produce these tiles and give them life was ingenious. The tiles were press molded by a machine in a cuenca fashion, allowing a speedier production, but the faces were left blank and were painstakingly painted by hand, bringing these beautiful women to life. As you can see, the “Smokey Eye” makeup was popular long before the girls on Jerseylicious made it famous.

You can purchase this tile at BungalowBILL.com

Cellini Craft Aluminum Chargers with American Tiles

What did silversmiths do when the Great Depression crashed their business? They turned to affordable aluminum! Aluminum is a soft, malleable and lightweight metal that can be polished to a bright shine.It is the third most common element and inexpensive. But, that was not always the case. Before an extraction process was invented in the 1880′s aluminum in its pure form was as expensive as gold. Napoleon III, Emperor of France, is reputed to have given a banquet where the most honored guests were given aluminum utensils, while the others made do with gold. In 1884 the largest single piece of cast aluminum at the time (100 oz.) was used as a capstone of the Washington Monument. Extracting processes were refined and costs reduced so that by 1910 aluminum foil was being used to wrap leftover food.

Cellini Craft started in 1914 in Evanston Illinois by Ernest Gerlach. He named his company after the Italian Renaissance goldsmith Benvenuta Cellini. Gerlack produced many prized silver products but the Depression hit his company as it did so many others. In 1934 Cellini Craft began using aluminum and calling it their Argental, or silver-like, line. They used several marks, some stamped with the letters MW the initials of Max Willie an East Coast distributor.

It seems the most prized pieces of Argental contain tiles. Being from the Midwest the company used many from the Mosaic Tile Company, of Zanesville Ohio. But, the best of the best contain tiles from California. The Cellini platters shown go from the hammered surface of the Arts and Crafts era, through Art Deco, to the smooth clean lines of Modernism.

You can find these for sale at BungalowBILL.com

Harris Strong Tile Clock

What time is it? It’s time for more Harris Strong tiles! These beautifully mottled blue and turquoise vintage tile squares are scattered over the walnut face, hovering at different heights. Matching tile bars mark the hours under the slim hour and minute hands. One of the best aspects of this tall wall clock is that it can either be hung vertically or horizontally. In the late 1950′s and early 60′s the master woodworker Bill Chaiken worked for the Strong studios. During this time you can see many of the tiles mounted onto walnut slabs sometimes with parquetry designs in exotic woods.

You can find this clock for sale at BungalowBILL

Low Art Tile c.1881

The J. and J.G. Low Art Tile Company produced some of the first American tiles. Manufacturing tiles in 1879, Low was poised to supply the mansions of the Gilded Age along the east coast, especially in the Boston Area. Low hired George Robertson for glazes and Arthur Osbourne for design.

The Aesthetic Movement tiles produced were usually covered in a single glaze which let the modeling of the object play the main role. This made them popular not only in Victorian homes, but also in Shingle Style, Arts and Crafts and Beaux Arts arhitecture.

The antique tiles featured this week are from an 1881 design called “ New Apple Blossom” a 17 tile fireplace surround. An apple tree rises from each side and rises to entwine at the top center. The branches are covered in blooms and buds and tiles are glazed in an amazing sapphire blue. It is a timeless design that can mix with any interior.

You can find this for sale at BungalowBILL.com

Made in Italy for Raymor

Raymor (1941-1980′s) was a well-known American distributor of modern domestic products, evolving from Russell Wright Accessories, with which the company’s founder, Irving Richards, had been linked since 1935. The company’s range included designs by Gilbert Rohde, Donald Deskey, Walter Dorwin Teague, Ray and Charles Eames, George Nelson, and Eva Zeisel. In the post-Second World War period Raymor also imported modern Scandinavian and Italian designs, including work by Arne Jacobsen, Tapio Wirkaala, Hans Wegner, and Ettore Sottsass, the latter designing a wide range of ceramics in the late 1950s. From 1947, when the Richards Morgenthau side of the business was formed, the company also manufactured lighting, ceramics, and glass in its own factory in New Jersey, many items being designed by Irving Richards himself. Although known both as Raymor and Richards Morgenthau & Co., the former was more closely identified with design and imports, the latter with sales. (Oxford Dictionary of Modern Design )

So, when collecting Raymor you’re actually collecting the work of many artists and manufacturers. Many times it is impossible to tell who made the object since these distributors owned the design and may have used different factories to produce them. Sometimes there is a three letter code on their paper labels that will give a clue to the manufacturer, such as BIT on a label would denote it was made by Bitossi.

Find this Raymor vase and others at BungalowBILL.com

"Sporting Cupids" by Trent Tile Co

New Jersey may be known for many things now, like Jersey Shore, Jerseylicious and The Sopranos, but in the late 19^th and early 20^th century it was known for its high quality tile. The clay deposits of central Jersey and access to transport hubs made the tile industry flourish. One of these companies was Trent. Based in Trenton, the factory opened in 1882 and employed two of the most talented designers of the time, Isaac Broome and William Gallimore. The quality was high and the company was very successful in supplying a product for all the Beaux Art structures being built at the turn of the century.

These tiles come from a fireplace surround labeled as “Sporting Cupids Facing” in an early Trent catalog. It was a group of frolicking putti floating through the air on a wind blown ribbon. Other examples of this group can be seen in Norman Karlson’s Encyclopedia of American Art Tile, Vol 1 page 185.

You can find these antique tiles for sale at BungalowBILL.com

Muresque Tile 1925-35

California is known for their antique tiles. They range from bright and colorful to soft and monochromatic. The Muresque Tile Company worked in Oakland California 1925-1935. Founded by William Muir, who was a tile setter in his native Glasgow Scotland. The tiles made at Muresque were influenced by Batchelder and Claycraft, many of which were molded scenic images in soft engobe glazes.

This tile is very dimensional, with its deeply molded features. The hacienda has a deep overhanging tile roofline over the balconies. The stone courtyard has a cactus to the right and behind the house are tall palm trees and puffy clouds. This tile has he less common mark on the back of “Muresque Tiles Inc. 1001 22^nd Ave, Oakland Cal.”

You can find this tile at BungalowBILL.com

D&M Flamingo Tile and Iron Table c.1930

The D&M Tile Company of Los Angeles California was only in business for eleven years, 1928-1939. During that time they made some pretty nice tiles, most of which were in geometric Moorish designs. I have only seen this flamingo D&M design once before. I first saw that tile in the 1990′s in a gallery in New Jersey attributed to another maker. It spent time in a collection in the South, came to me, then went into another collection in California.

I was pleased to acquire this sweet little tile and iron stand. Not only is the tile special, but the iron is pretty nice too. The handle arches up and makes it comfortable to carry. The rings on the sides can hold drinks, or small flower pots. The four legs arch to mimic the handle and connect at the stem with rivets and a curled detail. Its size makes it easy to carry and you can always find a spot next to a chair or in a corner to show it off. You can see this at BungalowBILL.com