“Gallipot” in the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary is defined as a “small pot of glazed earthenware”. It got the name because it was imported to England from the Mediterranean in galleys. You will find no mention of “galleyware”, the traditional name for English earthenware pottery — which had no need to be imported in ships. The word is much more likely to be linked to a ship’s galley, the kitchen and oven, and thus simply signifies fired wares. This also does away with another misconception: many of the numerous Galleywood place-names in England have nothing to do with a local gallows, which would have been wasted in a wood, rather than set up on the edge of a town or a hill where it could be seen. These galleys were kilns.

Similarly, “delftware” is defined as 18th century, deriving from the Dutch town’s tin-glazed blue-and-white pottery. However, it is not only a Dutch word, but also Old English, from delving or digging — as Adam did — and as a place-name (Delph in Yorkshire, Delftfield, Glasgow) it signifies a quarry or claypit. In fact, “delfware” was an alternative English and Lowland Scots term for galleyware even before Dutch Delft became famous. Delft’s international pre-eminence was only established after a gunpowder explosion in 1654 wiped out its previous brewing and copper industries. Before that, its potters had been overshadowed by those of Rotterdam, Haarlem and The Hague, as well as the southern Netherlands. It is customary to give Dutch Delft the capital letter, while similar pottery from England and other countries is delftware.

Among the best-known products of both the Dutch and English potteries were tiles. As wall-coverings they came to the Netherlands from Spain and Italy, and the majolica blues and yellows came with them. Although seemingly simple, tiles are not easy to make, since they can warp in the firing. Once this had been overcome, the standardised methods of the Netherlands, together with standard basic measurements, gave birth to a major industry which continues today. English delftware tiles are mostly from the 18th century, and even though to begin with they followed Dutch patterns, an experienced eye soon recognises differences of size, design and palette, and later in the century the English developed their own characteristics. In Flanders production lasted from the mid-16th century to about 1625, when Rotterdam, Delft and Makkum in Friesland took it up. The Dutch often decorated complete rooms in tiles, partly because they helped to protect walls against pervasive damp. In fireplaces they helped to reflect heat into the rooms, and they were popular in kitchens. As well as individual tiles and sets making up patterns such as stars, they produced elaborate tile pictures, which can be of great quality and are highly valued by collectors. Alas, not that many interiors have survived intact, because of changing fashions in middle-class decoration and the change from fireplaces to cast-iron stoves. However, from the 19th century onwards tile collectors have ensured that individual specimens and panels have survived in great numbers.

Jonathan Horne, of Sampson and Horne, 22 Brook’s Mews, W1, is the doyen of London dealers in English delftware. It is an ideal field for beginners. “On a tile you get much more interesting design for your money than you would on a plate,” he says. There is plenty of variety, and even though he sees fewer on the market than he used to, there are still good examples to be found in shops, sales and markets.

“An average price for a good Dutch tile with a pleasing design nowadays would be £100, but you might still be lucky enough to find one at £10 or so. A complete panel picture, however, could set you back anything up to £30,000.”