TILES AND IDENTITY BY PATTERN CLASSIFICATION

Abstract

Walled tiles can be figurative or patterned. Whereas the figurative tiles can better be described by theme or author, tile patterns are traditionally classified using more abstract rules that describe either the motif or the pattern itself. In this paper, we present a traditional mathematical classification of plane patterns, the Washburn and Crowe Algorithm, and use it to identify or distinguish tile patterns. We present a complete mathematical classification of the tile patterns present in all places of public access in the Almada region and show how this classification can help recover damaged tiled walls and floors, in order to preserve our heritage. We extend this mathematical analysis to 20th century patterns and quasipatterns, hoping to show that this classification can add to our knowledge of the identity of these patterns.