Tiles

These tiles would have formed part of a much larger panel decorating the lower portion of an indoor wall. They were made using the cuenca technique, also known as arista, designed to prevent the bright colors of the glaze from running together during firing. Before firing, the still-moist tile would be pressed into a mold, which would create ridges outlining the design and separating the areas where different colored glazes would be applied. Each tile forms one quarter of a design which can be endlessly repeated.

The cuenca technique was invented in either Seville or Toledo as a cheaper, yet still aesthetically effective, substitute for cuerda seca. Large quantities of such cuenca tiles were mass-produced, and identical tiles can still be seen in situ at the Convent of Santa Isabel in Toledo.