Tile panel with a vase of flowers, anonymous, c. 1690 - c. 1750
Large panels of tiles depicting vases of flowers were often fitted into fireplaces. The tiles could withstand heat and formed an attractive decoration in the otherwise bare hearth when there was no fire. Such panels would later form part of the tiling of the more formal rooms. Panels of tiles were in vogue as wall decorations in a number of circles, including the German aristocracy.