Victorian tiles.

During the Victorian period in England and the United States, tiled floors, particularly in heavily trafficked areas, became a practical and beautiful alternative to more fragile floor coverings. At the same time health officials became aware that unsanitary conditions, particularly in cities, were a breeding ground for germs and that tiled floors, which could be washed with strong solutions, contributed to better hygiene.

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Tiled floors were installed in some of the best-known buildings on both sides of the Atlantic, from the Palace of Westminster in London to the United States Capitol in Washington, D. C., and from hallways in apartment buildings and lobbies to floors in museums such as the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. The art of making encaustic tiles by hand dates to medieval times and was revived in England in the mid-nineteenth century by Herbert Minton and Company of Stoke-on-Trent. These tiles proved to be so popular that others followed suit, among them Maw and Company, Campbell Brick and Tile Company, and Malkin Edge and Company. One of the best-known designers of tiles was Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin whose intricate geometric floors were an important decorative aspect of the interiors of public buildings such as the Houses of Parliament in London and churches he designed throughout England. ...