In the last photo of the article you can see the lower part of the tile which must've been exposed to the weather.
My eyes may deceive me but I seem to see non-random patterns on the lower half that look like they could also be cursive writing. I wonder whether someone could image the tile with lidar or a scanner or maybe do a sonic density scan across the surface to see whether anything pops out.
It might be impossible to determine but wonder if it was a joke, written by another coworker or by the “dismissed”. Mostly find it odd the writing was done before the tile was cured.
Anyway cool stuff. Reminds me of deciphering Roman graffiti a bit.
This reminds me of my high school woodworking teacher, who would tend to write late notes for other teachers on pieces of wood whenever we didn't finish class on time.
how high was the rate of illiteracy then? I' guessing it was still high at that point in time, which makes you think why it was written out in the first place.
Anywhere wood shingles/shakes are used for siding they're commonly used as scratch pads for record keeping. If the writing on them is no longer needed and they're the right size and close at hand they get installed. There are plenty of last month's time punches and yesterday's materials lists on people's houses.
What's the purpose? Is it for communicating? or a signed document?
Maybe the clay composition, the process of firing it and the final product serve as the signature of the company? Also tile can't be burnt while paper can be. Interesting idea.
It seems that 19th-century tile makers sometimes used clay tiles as memo pads. Cawarden Reclaim (who found that dismissal notice) stumbled upon another tile that contains an order list:
This is an old handmade pan tile, made on 21st July 1802. [...] Reading the information, it seems that this is an order list for the maker. With no paper and pen to hand, the words were jotted down on a freshly formed clay tile, which was waiting to be dried out and fired. This tile was fired, used on a roof, and remained in place for approximately 220 years.
Why do you overthink it? (The article also seems to mystify it a bit): Possibly put a paper on a drying work item and scribed it on paper, and it got imprinted through the paper.
It's amusing to think this was that company's loser boss version of firing by voicemail. New load of tile, you put all the tile on the roof, hey there's one extra, hey there's writing on it, aw what the hell!!?
I'm reminded of the Kids in the Hall sketch where a boss calls his underling in for a superficially normal work meeting, puts his feet up on the desk, and "You're" "Fired" is written on the bottom of his shoes, sending hints until the employee quits.
> "The fact that someone went to the trouble of writing that out on the back of clay before it was fired, and then firing the tile and using it for the purpose it was designed for," Giles added.
This makes my brain hurt. The fact that some did that..... and?!
The tile next to it has got a 200-year-old offer of "generous" severance that is conditional on non-disclosure, non-disparagement, a waiver of all claims and an agreement to binding arbitration in the case of disputes.
My eyes may deceive me but I seem to see non-random patterns on the lower half that look like they could also be cursive writing. I wonder whether someone could image the tile with lidar or a scanner or maybe do a sonic density scan across the surface to see whether anything pops out.
Life of Brian had pointers on Roman graffiti
https://youtu.be/M3gNdGHsEIk
Perhaps messy handwriting back then was less common, on the theory that either you knew how to write neatly, or you didn't know how to write at all.
Maybe the clay composition, the process of firing it and the final product serve as the signature of the company? Also tile can't be burnt while paper can be. Interesting idea.
I imagine that it was like writing a dismissal note on the white board after a heated office argument.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJtBaj5dXfU
This makes my brain hurt. The fact that some did that..... and?!
"Psst, pass this tile up to that useless so and so John..." or "Hey, John, there's one tile left over, you can have it."
Not to mention firing John Lewis. It does have some consistency to it.
fun fact: this is the origin of being 'let go' coming to be known as "getting fired"
> The sense of "sack, dismiss from employment" is recorded by 1877 (with out; 1879 alone) in American English.
> Research had found a firm called Thomas Austin Brick & Tile Makers, based at Clay Hills, Stoke-on-Trent in 1820
“What, boss?”
“You’re both about to be fired”
After thus performing one’s duties with this tile, report to E. Booker for reeducation.”
This is what I immediately thought of, some dystopian metaverse where a roofer gets sacked…
The story is less dystopian and pale.