Offered for sale is a beautiful antique DELFT BLUE porcelain APOTHECARY TILE. It bears an image of a man and woman preparing medicines as they would have done in the seventeenth century. They work at a table with bottles and jars on it, the man measuring small quantities of herbs on a balance, while the woman holds the formulation and seems to be instructing or advising him. A mortar and pestle, a potted plant, and a cluster of seed pods appear in the foreground, and herbs hang on the wall at the side, drying. Unicorns and an urn adorn the top or the tile. This tile was hand made, and is marked Delfts Schoonhoven, Holland (picture 3). It is part of a limited-edition series of tiles commissioned by pharmaceutical company Burroughs Wellcome, as part of their Pharmacy Education Program.

Text on the back (picture 4) gives a brief history of Middle Ages pharmacy practices, and also describes the use and purpose of apothecary tiles or "pill tiles".

This tile measures 6 inches (15.2cm) square.

It is in excellent condition with no chips, cracks, scratches, or repairs. There is no discoloration in the glaze. The crackle lines in the background are part of the painted design (they do not extend to the edge of the glaze).

Watch for other fine vintage and antique porcelain items that I have to offer this week!

All my items are from a SMOKE FREE home.

I pack all items in sturdy cartons with plenty of cushioning. My shipping time is a HIGH estimate -- I can usually ship faster than the estimated time. I am happy to combine shipping to save on postage IF doing so will not risk breakage of fragile items. If you win more than one of my items, please wait for a revised invoice before sending payment.

International customers please be aware that there may be additional import duties and customs fees not included in the price of shipping. I will do what I can to keep the shipping costs low while still packing each item safely. Used items will be marked as such on the customs forms, which may reduce or eliminate import fees to some countries.

Good luck and thanks for looking!