5 Rare Facts About Tiles That Are Quite Fascinating

We often take tiles at their face value; they are pretty to look at, easy to clean, and water-resistant, so we use them for our flooring and even on walls. But tiles are more than these, and it has been proved time and again during history. So, before you think of whether you should opt for tiles for your next residential, commercial, or office project, here are some rare and unique facts about tiles and their contribution to the world.

1. Tiles’ Roots Are In Egyptian Era
The technology of creating tiles can be traced to the Egyptian era, which was found during an archaeological dig. The Egyptian tile was dated about 4,700 BC. There has also been a record of the oldest ceramic being discovered in Moravia, and it dates to 25,000 BC, and it is known as Venus of Dolní Věstonice.

2. The Art Of Tessellation
Maurits Cornelis Escher, a Dutch artist, got so fascinated with tiles that he chose the tessellation as his art form. He is well known for his incredible Moorish and geometric tessellation, where he used tiles to depict everyday life and events in a realistic form.

3. Sydney Opera House
One of the modern architectural splendor and iconic Sydney Opera House is amazing to look at when the sun falls on its white domes. The roof from a distance seems uniformly white, and the reflection is breathtaking. However, if you take a closer look at the roof, you will find two colors of tiles, glossy white and matt cream, in a chevron pattern. The roof is done with over 1 million tiles, which a Swedish company manufactured. The tiles became quite famous and are now referred to as ‘Sydney tiles.’

4. Insulation For Space Shuttles
Let’s leave the earth and move towards the universe with tiles. The technology used in tile and ceramic production is so advanced that tiles have become a key component in insulating the space shuttles for quite a while. They are capable of weathering the extreme temperature the shuttle creates when re-entering the atmosphere of the earth. In addition, ceramic tiles are used by space scientists on the exhaust cones of the rocket.

5. 10 Elephants Can Stand!
If tiles are used for the space shuttle, it can bear extreme temperature, but how about its strength. Ceramic tiles have unbelievable compressive strength. If you ask how much, we can easily say it can survive ten or more full-grown elephant weights on it. The durability that tiles offer is compared to none.