Paul R Secord

The Patterned Tiles of William Tyelere of Otterbourne Paul R Secord

This is an investigation of Medieval decorative patterned tiles made by William Tyelere of Otterbourne ca. 1400, and found throughout Hampshire County in southern Engand. The most extensive grouping of tiles made by Tyelere is at Winchester College, Winchester. It is solely because of the account rolls, preserved in the College archives for over 600 years, that the subject tiles can be attributed to a specific maker, and are known to have been manufactured at a specific place and time. It is extremely rare to have such primary source data for Medieva tiles. In addition to tiles with floral and purely decorative motifs, there is a tile showing Richard I in combat with Saladin during the Third Crusade, a story that evolved into a national myth, a tile showing castle battlements found on the arms of Eleanor of Castile, a tile forming a Romanesque Rose Window, and a tile showing the coat of arms of Baron St. John of Basing. Some of the tiles show damage caused by breaks in the manufacturing blocks, no doubt caused use, perhaps over many years. While such damage is well known to specialists in the field, it is especially pronounced on several of the Tyelere made tiles. We hope that the reader will take as much pleasure in exploring this subject as the author did during its preparation.