History of Terracotta
Terracotta in Italian means “baked earth”. This ancient handmade process of mixing the earth with water and then taking it through a double baking process, first with the natural sunlight and secondly in a wood burning kiln, gives this amazingly simplistic material great colors and finishes. Those colors actually vary from region to region based on soil. Bordeaux is known for its yellow coloration and the Southwest of France for its pink-ish colors.
Suitability
This handmade material had many applications in the 17th and 18th century as a building supply. Parefueille were used for roof tiles while bricks were used for structural building such as walls. The terracotta tiles can be used indoors and outdoors in warm climates. Antique terracotta in France, is qualified as material that is over 100 years old.
All The Shapes, Sizes and Colors
Paris Ceramics keeps an inventory of some of the most magnificent terracotta available in Europe. We offer an array of sizes of squares, from 6” x 6” all the way to 14” x 14”. We maintain an inventory of hexagons 6” x 6” and Parefueille in 8” x 14”. All this product is available in a variety of colors. We carry bricks in 2 significant colors: the traditional red and pink and the light colors of white and beige. Those variety of colors can be cut into an inch thickness and applied into fireplaces and flooring creating the effect without the weight.
Design Possibilities
Paris Ceramics provides an array of applications for a more creative pallet of antique terracotta. For example, we can create an array of shapes such as arabesque, crescents, and scallops by cutting these materials in our factory. We also cut the edges of the antique Parefueille to create our renowned “skinny strips” as seen in pictures on our website.
This ancient material, though very old, can be juxtaposed into a very modern, contemporary setting as well, to give an amazing depth of design.
Time Honored Craftsmanship
If new terracotta is more suiting to your project, we also import this from the South of France, newly baked material that is made in the same fashion as it was 100’s of years ago. Ask us about French New Terracotta.
