Tile thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Tile

ca. 1930 (manufactured)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The firm Martin van Straaten & Co was a tile importer run by Martin van Straaten and Charles Lam, and was based at 28 Newgate Street, London at the beginning of the 20th century. The firm imported many Chinese tiles, but after World War One they were harder to obtain and often arrived warped. The firm instead bought similar tiles from Dutch firms, based on the Chinese originals which they provided to them. The tiles were made by Tichelaar in Makkum, but the firm also worked closely with Van Hulst in Harlingen and Ravesteijn, Utrecht. A set of Chinese tiles that were likely the influence for this group are also in the museum's collection (FE.6-16-2014.
Martin van Straaten was born in 1886 and died during the sinking of the R.M.S. Lusitania in 1915. The ship was on a return voyage from New York to Liverpool when it was torpedoed off the coast of Southern Ireland with the loss of 1195 civilian lives.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Tin-glazed earthenware
Brief description
Tile, tin-glazed earthenware, painted with a Chinese figure, made by Tichelaar, Makkum (Friesland), Netherlands, ca. 1930
Physical description
Tile of tin-glazed earthenware, painted with a Chinese figure.
Dimensions
  • Height: 13.5cm
  • Width: 13.5cm
  • Thickness: 1.4cm
Object history
A series of tiles on which the designs of these are most likely based are also in the museum collection- FE.6-16.2014.
Summary
The firm Martin van Straaten & Co was a tile importer run by Martin van Straaten and Charles Lam, and was based at 28 Newgate Street, London at the beginning of the 20th century. The firm imported many Chinese tiles, but after World War One they were harder to obtain and often arrived warped. The firm instead bought similar tiles from Dutch firms, based on the Chinese originals which they provided to them. The tiles were made by Tichelaar in Makkum, but the firm also worked closely with Van Hulst in Harlingen and Ravesteijn, Utrecht. A set of Chinese tiles that were likely the influence for this group are also in the museum's collection (FE.6-16-2014.
Martin van Straaten was born in 1886 and died during the sinking of the R.M.S. Lusitania in 1915. The ship was on a return voyage from New York to Liverpool when it was torpedoed off the coast of Southern Ireland with the loss of 1195 civilian lives.
Bibliographic reference
Pieter Jan Tichelaar, 'Een betere tegel voor een hogere prijs: Imitatie Antieke Tegels van Tichelaar Makkum 1850-1950' in Een Illusie Armer Een Ervaring Rijker: Imitaties En Vervalsingen in Keramiek En Glas. Vomen uit Vuur, 184/185 2003.
Collection
Accession number
C.199-2014

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Record createdJanuary 31, 2014
Record URL
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