Roof tile

“ The roof and chimneys should be kept out of sight as much as possible; and therefore the one very flat, and the other very plain. We ought to revive the Greek custom of roofing with thin slabs of coarse marble, cut into the form of tiles. However, where the architect finds he has a very cool distance, and few trees about the building, and where it stands so high as to preclude the possibility of its being looked down upon, he will, if he be courageous, use a very flat roof of the dark Italian tile. The eaves, which are all that should be seen, will be peculiarly graceful ”

“ Old window-frames and doors may be used up advantageously in making a potting shed, and a brick or tile flooring is to be desired. A lean-to with tiled roof, in which a few glass tiles are inserted, will answer well, if a wall can be spared for it, and the whole front may be open, if the situation is quite sheltered. ”

“ A broad red roof of tile is a conspicuous object on the same road which winds and turns in true crooked country fashion, with hedgerows, trees, and fields on both sides, and scarcely a dwelling visible. It is not, indeed, so crooked as a lane in Gloucestershire, which I verily believe passes the same tree thrice, but the curves are frequent enough to vary the view pleasantly. ”

“ These tiles are much larger than the Plain-Tiles, which are used in roofing dwellings, &c.; they are flat, as the name indicates, and are fixed to the laths of the roof by wooden pegs, two holes being left in the tile for that purpose. Foot and ten-inch tiles are thick square tiles of those dimensions, used for paving, hearths, &c., or for coping walls. All tiles are burnt in a kiln.
Bricks made in Great Britain are charged with a duty, and as it constitutes an important item in the revenue, the manufacture is laid under strict surveillance by the Excise. ”

“ The tiled ridges always terminate in a shouldered mass of tiles specially designed for the purpose. The smaller ribs of tiles that run down to the eaves, along the ridges in a hip-roof, or border the verge in a gable-roof, often terminate in some ornamental tile in high-relief. ”

“ Other ways of lining the roofs of rustic buildings are discussed in Chapter XIII. For summer-houses thatch makes a good-looking roof, but a thatched verandah would scarcely be desirable unless attached to a thatched cottage. Practically the choice lies between shingles, metal, and tile or slate. A metal roof is, undoubtedly, that most easily fixed by the beginner; black sheet iron looks better than galvanised, and must be kept painted. As a matter of taste, metal looks thin and poor, but it becomes less objectionable when painted; a deep, dull red would be the colour to be preferred. ”

“ The red tiles, which were used for the most part, are certainly the most agreeable to the artistic eye, for their seemingly haphazard setting, due in part to the builder and in part to nature, affords that pleasure which always arises from an unstudied irregularity of line. Roof tiles were made thicker 125 and less carefully in the old days, and our artist’s truth in delineation may be detected in almost any drawing by examining where the weight has swagged away the tiles between the main roof beams. ”

“ The ground floor was generally of brick, the upper one was tile-hung: there was nearly always a good chimney, sometimes rising out of the roof, but often carried on a massive base which was continued down to the ground. The rich colours which come to these bricks and tiles with age tend to spoil those who live in their midst, and to make them look with a somewhat dull eye upon the quieter tones prevalent in stone districts. ”

“ Colored tiles are used in some cases with quaint effect; but I believe the dignity of the building is always greater when the roof is kept in an undisturbed mass, opposing itself to the variegation and richness of the walls. The Italian 346 round tile is itself decoration enough, a deep and rich fluting, which all artists delight in ”

“ He will thus obtain a bit of very strong color, which will impart a general glow of cheerfulness to the building, and which, if he manages it rightly, will not be [Pg 139] glaring nor intrusive. It is to be observed, however, that he can only do this with villas of the most humble order, and that he will seldom find his employer possessed of so much common sense as to put up with a tile roof. When this is the case, the flat slabs of the upper limestone (ragstone) are usually better than slate. ”

“ The roof also is formed of bamboo, covered with a varnish so good and strong that no amount of rain will rot it. p. 27These canes are fully three palms in girth, and from ten to fifteen paces in length. They are cut across at each knot, and the pieces are then split so as to form from each two hollow tiles, and with them the house is roofed; only every such tile has to be nailed down to prevent the wind from lifting it. In short, the whole palace is built of these bamboos, which, I may mention, are employed for a great variety of other useful purposes. ”

“ Ample storage can be obtained for portable seats in the cellar.
The floors are laid on terra-cotta arches, built on iron beams, and the beams are protected by terra-cotta casings.
The roof of the building is to be covered with slate [preferably red] , laid on terra-cotta and supported by iron trusses and beams; the iron-work to be protected by a fireproof covering. The tower roofs contemplate granite, lapped and jointed so as to be weatherproof, laid on iron beams and supported by iron trusses. If a cheaper covering is desired, slate or tile can be used without affecting the design. ”

“ Another ornamental use of these shadows is, that they break the line of junction of the wall with the roof: a point always desirable, and in every kind of building, whether we have to do with lead, slate, tile, or thatch, one of extreme difficulty. This object is [Pg 19] farther forwarded in the Italian cottage, by putting two or three windows up under the very eaves themselves, which is also done for coolness, so that their tops are formed by the roof ”

“ B, B, Dowels to fix the joint-tiles. C, Tilting piece, a, a, Flat surface of tiles.
the upper edge of the next tile (see D in fig. 1) . The άρμοί also were half-lapped at the joints (see E in fig. 1) . All these were usually fastened with bronze nails to the rafters of the roof. In some cases each joint-tile had a projecting peg to fix it to the next άρμός, as shown at F. In the temples of Imperial Rome marble roofing tiles were used like those shown at fig. 1. ”

“ At the present day, when slate is not used, tiles of burnt clay are the ordinary roofing material, and many complicated forms have been invented to exclude rain. Most of these are; however, costly and do not answer better than the rectangular tile about 9 by 6 in., fastened with two copper or even stout zinc nails, and well bedded on mortar mixed with hair. ”

“ In plainer dwellings they were covered with a mixture of fragments of stone and mortar, or with pavement of brick, stone, or common tiles. But in great mansions the floor was one of the special points for display. It was either formed of white, black, or colored marbles, arranged in a check pattern, or it was a specimen of elaborate inlaid work. The tesselated pavements, of which so many remains exist, display two varieties. The first, or plainer kind, is formed of tiles moulded into various forms of animals, flowers, or such devices, each tile being a perfect figure in itself. ”

“ The outside walls are of mud and stone, and the roof, when of tiles, is supported by a huge beam that runs from one end of the house to the other. The corners of the roof are usually curled up after the Chinese fashion. A stone slab runs along the whole length of the roof, and is turned up at the two ends, over the upper angle of the roof itself. The tiles are cemented at the two sides of this slab, and likewise at the lower borders of the roof. The windows, again, are rectangular and are placed directly under the roof, being in consequence well protected from the rain. ”

“ The floor, for example, is rich in its varieties of tiles, there being some five or six of different designs and shades. It is true that the great central floors are made of tiles of uniform design and color, and that these—a deep brick red, with small green spots at the corners of each tile—are grave and good; but all around, where we pass through arch or door, there is a deep fringe of brilliant tiles, which are reflected into the glass cases nearest them, to the injury of the objects shown ”

“ The velvety quiet of these floors imparts a tranquillity to the kitchen, contagious to mistress and to maid.
It is needless to say much for the tile as you know its beauties. It may be cold to the feet, non-resistant and tiring to the back and slippery when wet, but this is overcome by mats of matting, cork or linoleum. Tile is made in every design and color to fit any desire or design. All corners and joints at the base of walls can be curved. It makes a unit of the whole room in design and intention as no other thing does. It can be cleaned out with a small hose. ”

“ Wood, brick, stone and slate, mingled in a way to content the eye of a colorist, cover what little space the windows leave on the outside of the house. All this is surmounted by a roof of red or violet tiles, or tarred plank, interrupted by openings to give light to the attics, and having an abrupt pitch. These steep roofs look well against the background of a northern sky; the rains run off them in torrents, the snow slips from them; they suit the climate, and do not require to be swept in winter. ”

“ In medieval times lead or copper [7] in large sheets was used for the chief churches and palaces of Europe; but in more ordinary work clay tiles of very simple form were employed. One variety, still very common in Italy, is shown in C, fig. 3. In this form of so-called “pan-tile” each tile has a double curve, forming a legula and imbrex both in one. Stone tiles were also very common throughout the middle ages. Another kind of roofing tile, largely used in pre-Norman times, and for some centuries later for certain purposes, was made of thin pieces of split wood, generally oak ”

“ The brick corner-work may be laid in dark or blue mortar with good effect in subduing the strong contrasts in color. Interior plastering should never be applied directly to the stone-work. Such walls do not readily conform to the sudden changes of the surrounding temperature, and are rendered damp and unwholesome from the moisture of the air being condensed upon them. They should be furred off, leaving an air-space between the stone-work and plastering, through the whole hight of the wall, and opening into the spaces between the rafters of the roof. ”

“ Between the ribs, timbers are fixed which carry minor ribs at a distance of eight feet apart, and upon these the ridge-and-furrow roofing is constructed in the manner that has been described for the flat roofing, but following the curve of the arched ribs. At the springing or foot of the arch on either side of the transept there is a range of louvre-frames to assist in the ventilation of the building, and on the top of the arch externally a narrow passage is formed to give access to the different parts of this roof. ”

“ During the 17th and 18tb centuries the old painted and decorated pavement tiles seemed to have been entirely replaced by the common buff or red terra-cotta "quarries" so largely used in farmhouse kitchens, dairies, &c, and it is to the painted tiles for walls and fireplaces that we have to look for the progress of the art.
The modern revival of tile-making in Europe dates from about 1830, when Samuel Wright, a potter of Shelton, near Stoke-upon-Trent, was granted a patent for the manufacture of tiles by mechanical means. ”

“ Caen stone or its clever representation in cement serves well for the more formal type of mantel and facing
Tile, the last of the four materials, gives more latitude in design than any of the others, sometimes too much latitude we feel. If understandingly used, nothing could be more appropriate and attractive, but tile has been used so carelessly that somehow we have a feeling that the tiled fireplace is for show rather than for use. In any case, there is no question whatever regarding the unfitness of the glazed tiles which have made horrors of thousands of pseudo fireplace openings. ”

“ A good form of flat roof is that in which concrete is used as a foundation for a waterproof layer of asphalt, laid to slight falls to allow the water to run off easily. This is the usual method adopted when a roof garden is required. Shingles or thatch look extremely well on a roof, but their use is debarred in a great many districts owing to the danger of fire. Galvanized iron tiles, zinc tiles and copper tiles may be employed on small areas with good effect. “ Willesden paper," often used as an insulating layer beneath slates and tiles, is also at times used as a roof covering. ”

“ The houses are usually very light structures, built of wood, one or two stories high. They resemble an American house but little. The roofs are made of tiles, straw, or shingles. Tiles make a pretty and durable roof, but they cost much more than straw, and hence the common people generally use the latter. ”

“ The best covering for the joints of tiles which are laid without collars, is a scrap of tin, bent so as to fit their shape,—scraps of leather, or bits of strong wood shavings, answer a very good purpose, though both of these latter require to be held in place by putting a little earth over their ends as soon as laid on the tile. ”

“ Out of an unseen quarry evermore
Furnished with tile, the fierce artificer
Curves his white bastions with projected roof
Round every windward stake, or tree, or door.
Speeding, the myriad-handed, his wild work
So fanciful, so savage, nought cares he
For number or proportion. ”