Mangalore Tile

The Mangalore tile is an interlocking, kiln-fired clay roof tile named after the port city of Mangalore (Mangaluru) in Karnataka, India. It became the standard pitched-roof covering along much of India's western coast and is still recognisable on houses, schools and public buildings from Goa to Kerala.

Origins

The tiles were introduced by German missionaries of the Basel Mission. Georg Plebst, who had been in India with the mission since 1851, studied industrial ceramics in Alsace before setting up a tile works in Mangalore. Production began on 4 December 1865 with two workers, making it the first industrial tile factory in India. Early designs followed those of the Gilardoni brothers of Altkirch, France; later the dominant pattern was based on a design by Wilhelm Ludowici from 1881.

Other factories followed quickly, including Albuquerque (1868) and Alvares (1878). Around 25 factories existed by the early 1900s and roughly 75 by 1994.

Material and form

The tiles are made from laterite clay dug from the banks of local rivers such as the Gurupura and Nethravathi. High iron content gives them their characteristic red colour. Because the tiles engage with one another, fewer are are needed to cover a given area than with older pan tiles, which reduced roof weight. Each tile weighs roughly 2-3 kg (4.4-6.6 lb), and the tiles are commonly laid on timber battens at a pitch of about 45 degrees, which sheds heavy monsoon rain.

Spread

Mangalore-pattern tiles are most common in coastal Karnataka (Canara), Goa, Kerala and the Konkan. In Kerala they replaced much palm-leaf thatch and older pan tiles during the British period. The tiles were also exported to East Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe and the Middle East.

Decline

Shortages of suitable clay and restrictions on clay extraction have closed many factories; about ten shut in 2007 alone. Raw-material supply remains the industry's main constraint.