News

Treasures from Worcestershire’s Past: ~3~ A floor tile excavated in Lowesmooor, Worcester

  • 13th December 2013

Our Treasure today is a floor tile that has been chosen by Laura Griffin, Senior Finds Archaeologist. Here she tells us more about the find:

This small floor tile was found during the excavations ahead of the St Martin’s Quarter development in Worcester. It is just one of the 209 floor tiles which were found associated with a medieval tile kiln on the site. The kiln can been dated to the late 14th century because the designs identified on many of the tiles are the same as those seen in the Worcester Cathedral Singing School pavement, which is documented as having been laid in 1370.

Whereas the majority of these tiles were decorated with heraldic designs, the tile in the photograph is of particular interest because it is decorated with the Arabic number ‘3’. Use of Arabic numerals was rare in the 13th-14th centuries and therefore this tile stands out from the rest of the group.

Don’t forget to check back next week to find out what Treasure number 4 is!

One response to “Treasures from Worcestershire’s Past: ~3~ A floor tile excavated in Lowesmooor, Worcester”

  1. You made some good points here. I did a search on the topic and found most people will agree with your blog. Thanks

Related news


  • 22nd March 2024
The Bromsgrove Court Leet: A court and project 400+ years in the making!

In recent years, documents relating to the business of the Bromsgrove Court Leet have been moved from dusty lofts and boxes under desks to the archive department at The Hive for permanent preservation. The Court Leet is a manorial court, which began when the manorial system was introduced by William the Conqueror in which the...

  • 14th March 2024
The Bailey Bridge

Hailed as a key invention to come out of World War II, Bailey bridges allowed waterways and steep drops to be crossed quickly and easily. Have you spotted any around Worcestershire? Help us record these often overlooked heritage sites. Named after the engineer and civil servant Donald Bailey, the Bailey Bridge was a prefabricated, modular...

  • 11th March 2024
Redditch New Town Archives: Sports, Promotion and Leisure

Within one of our large Commission for the New Town collections, there are c9500 photographs, reports and other items from the Development Corporation Technical Library. We just love showing them to you on our social media platforms. They bring the Redditch New Town collections to life, and capture the design characteristics of the period. One...