Conservation & Heritage Issue 49 October 2025 - Flipbook - Page 106
Terr acotta and Faience –
Sustainable, Historic and
for the Future
For those unfamiliar with the terms, terracotta comes from the Latin terra cotta meaning
“baked earth”, and faience is simply glazed terracotta. Faience, which is a French word traces
to the city of Faenza in northern Italy which was a centre for the production of tin-glazed
earthenware during the Renaissance. This method of manufacturing was taken up and further
popularised by the French eventually becoming known as faience. To further confuse things,
in some cases faience (in construction) is referred to as ceramic!
Both terracotta and faience became extremely popular in
the 19th and early 20th centuries for use in construction
particularly in the UK, parts of Europe, the US and
Australia. Its popularity was based on several factors, not
least the ease with which it could be cleaned which was
especially relevant due to the air pollution at that time.
In situ repairs could be made and the longevity of the
material guaranteed to last the centuries. Naturally, as a
pre-fired material, terracotta and faience is fire-resistant
and has excellent thermal qualities. Surprisingly though,
one of its most admired qualities at that time was its
relative cheapness and that it could be glazed and fired to
appear like stone, which was then far more expensive. It
was not unusual, particularly in the US, for buildings to
be designed with expensive stone at ground to first floor
level, and then with faience glazed to mimic the stone for
the storeys above.
One of the greatest and most exciting aspects to
terracotta and faience is the versatility of design
possibilities the material affords. Depending on the
different manufacturing methods, it can be formed
into virtually any shape or pattern and can be glazed
in virtually any colour, with a range of finishes from
high gloss to extreme matt. There is perhaps no better
example of the sheer exuberance of pattern and design
the material can offer than the many designs of the
Catalan architect Antonio Gaudi (1852-1926) from his
Casa Vicens to the Park Guell and culminating in the
Sagrada Familia. In the UK the material is possibly best
known from the many Victorian pubs to the majority of
the London Underground stations.
The material has, like stone, clung to its popularity in the
face of rather less inspiring or artistic materials. It is not
always the cheapest option, but buildings crafted properly
with this material will outlive their architects and clients
and bring pleasure to future generations. Like stone,
terracotta and faience is, due to its longevity and the ease
of repair and cleaning, incredibly sustainable. Szerelmey
is one of the few (if any) companies to have a Faience
division that specialises wholly in the design, installation,
repair and cleaning of this material. Not only have
we installed some of the most iconic modern faience
buildings (like One Eagle Place or A House for Essex) but
we work hard to preserve the existing historic ones. Visit
our website to see more of our faience buildings or to
book our CPD on The Use of Terracotta and Faience in
Modern Building.
Below, Homerton College, Dining Hall
