This text aims to integrate tiles and their design and manufacture, with the architectural and social environment in which they were used. It concentrates particularly on the "golden age" of tiles in the 19th century when their production became a major industry. Ceramic tiles are one of the oldest and most universally employed forms of architectural decoration. During the 19th century this medium reached a zenith and this book highlights the way in which the Industrial Revolution transformed the use of ceramic tiles in buildings. It not only brought new techniques and equipment for production but created an expanding world market for decorative building materials. The book features the variety of techniques used by decorative tile manufacturers and the way in which designers, architects and builders exploited the colour palette of ceramic glazes. Coupled with design ideas from around the world and from the history of ceramics, the resulting buildings show how the creative use of ceramic tiles can produce architecture and interiors of quality.