Medieval tile from Christchurch Priory, Dorset, made at a tile kiln in Dorset, Hampshire or Wiltshire, ca. 1280

Red earthenware stamped with a design of two birds addorsed regardant and separated by a floral stem, inlaid with white clay and glazed. Inlaid floor tiles (with decoration inlaid into their surface using contrasting coloured clay) were produced in England from at least 1237. During the 13th century they were used to decorate palaces and religious houses. This tile is a typical product of what is known as the Wessex School. This group of tilemakers was active in the later part of the 13th century, and produced tiles for a large number of sites throughout the region.

The first phase of construction of the Priory Church at Christchurch began in the late 11th century on the site of an earlier Saxon church. A variety of Medieval inlaid tiles are known from the Priory, some of which are among the earliest found in England; these date from around 1242-1244. This tile is from a slightly later group of tiles made around 1280.