Porcelain tile

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Porcelain tiles or ceramic tiles are either tiles made of porcelain, or relatively tough ceramic tiles made with a variety of materials and methods, that are suitable for use as floor tiles, or for walls. They have a low water absorption rate, generally less than 0.5 percent. The clay used to build porcelain tiles is generally denser than ceramic tiles. They can either be glazed or unglazed. Porcelain tiles are one type of vitrified tiles and are sometimes referred to as porcelain vitrified tiles.

Historically, porcelain was not the usual material for tiles, which were much more often made of earthenware (terracotta) or stoneware. The first porcelain tiles were made in China, and were largely used for decorating walls, such as in the 15th-century Porcelain Tower of Nanjing (now largely destroyed); the use of porcelain tile as wall decoration long remained typical. In Europe, palaces also occasionally featured a few rooms with walls decorated in porcelain plaques, often with forms in high relief. These were manufactured by Capodimonte porcelain and Real Fábrica del Buen Retiro, among others. Historically, porcelain was too expensive for most tiling purposes, but it is now much cheaper (especially in the form of bone china), and is now widely used.