Arts and Crafts Beehive Tile
Labor Day is over and it’s time to get back to work. This week’s antique tile is an image of the iconic beehive. Bees and the beehive are symbols of industriousness. Each individual bee works for the common good of all in the hive. They are the symbol of a prosperous community as well as wisdom. The symbol is often used in religion as well. In Christianity it is an emblem of Christ. The bee symbolizes the soul that flies away from the body in the Siberian, Central Asian, and South American Indian traditions. Napoleon even chose the bee as his personal emblem.
This is a large tile measuring 16.5 inches tall. It has deeply incised lines that would be filled with grout when installed to give the panel a mosaic look. The matte blue glaze curdles in places. The back is unmarked, but by the clay body and glazes I suspect this to be Owens Empire, or at least from the Ohio River Valley.
You can find this tile for sale at BungalowBILL.com
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