2 ON THE OLDER FORMS OF 



eminently belong to the family. This fact holds good with 

 regard to the house, and, as. yv see, the persistent adher- 

 ence century after century to the same kind of house by 

 migrating tribes, under widely vary ing climatic conditions, 

 attests to this truth. In studying the origin of Egyptian 

 or Grecian art, the inquirer finds his quest abruptly ended 

 at the line dividing the imperishable stone structure from 

 the perishable mud or wooden one that preceded it. The 

 perishable wooden roof, however, often has associated with 

 it a covering which is the most lasting. Rock crumbles, 

 metal oxidizes, but the rudest earthenware is imperishable, 

 and so the terra-cotta roofing-tiles are often the only sur- 

 viving relic of a house structure. Furthermore, these 

 objects, being always associated with the house, are inti- 

 mately identified with every roof-covered family. The 

 persistence of certain types of roofing-tiles among peoples 

 shows the fixedness of a habit. It is a noteworthy fact 

 that the earliest type of terra-cotta roofing-tile ever ex- 

 humed still forms the roof-covering of the greater mass of 

 mankind to-day. The enduring nature of these objects 

 will ultimately enable one to trace the paths followed by 

 tile-making races in their various migrations. Wherever 

 the Romans went, the typical Roman tile may be found, 

 often impressed with the stamp of some Roman Legion. 



Realizing the imperishable nature of roofing-tiles, and 

 the fact that they are scattered all over the world, it has 

 seemed to me that an inquiry into the various types of terra- 

 cotta roofing-tiles and their geographical distribution might 

 be of value. Unfortunately for the American student, the 

 material to be studied is confined to the Old World, and 

 one must go there for the purposes of investigation. 



It would be an interesting inquiry to learn at what time, 

 and where, roofing-tiles were first used. When the earli- 

 est hut-builder learned the art of sloping his roof, and 



