Whilst travelling to Morocco to source authentic handcrafted Moroccan tiles, I had the opportunity to experience first-hand the craftsmanship of a 1200 year old tradition - The Art of Zellij.

For many years, we made and distributed beautiful handmade tiles here in Australia under Vulcano Clay™ and as a former Potter and teacher of Art & Ceramic, I was extremely interested in the history and practice of Zellij. 

Spending time with the Artisans, I was inspired by their dedication to craft and the skills they had mastered over a lifetime.

It is for this reason, I have chosen our Moroccan Collection as the first to carry the Vulcano Clay™ Trademark.

Robert Hawkins

CEO & Managing Director

THE MAKING OF ZELLIGE

Every single step of this process is hand crafted.

The raw clay mined from the mountainside is taken to the Zellij works where it is mixed with water and left to “plasticise” 

Through pure skill, the clay is paddled by hand to create the rough tile, then cut to 110 x110mm and dried under the Moroccan sun. 

The raw tiles are then artfully stacked into the kiln one by one. The kiln is fired using the dried remnants of the local olive oil industry.  Depending on the tiles position in the kiln, the resulting colour of clay biscuit is lighter or darker. 

This varied undertone from tile biscuit combines with varied glaze thickness due to the hand glazed process and gives rise to the wonderful variation in tone that we recognise in Zellij..

In our high-tech world where a copy is perfect, the high touch Zellij is unique and beautiful in its imperfection. Each piece is unique, carrying with it, its own DNA. 

The uniqueness of each tile combined with their imperfections is what make these tiles perfect.

Each and every tile is hand chiselled out of the glazed terracotta biscuit to create their shape. 

Harmonies of colour are created by combining the hand-glazed shade and tone variations.  Whilst each piece is perfect alone, they are extraordinary together. 

For those who love and appreciate the ‘Art of Zellij’, character flaws such as pits, cracks and chipped edges are embraced and the magic of their imperfection comes alive.