Italian Roof Tiles

CoorItalia Architectural Elements Division offers Italian Roof Tiles that come in a variety of tones, as well as a variety of sizes and shapes.

Barrel clay tiles (also known, in the USA, as Mission roof tiles) are the vast majority of installations throughout Italy. These installations call for two barrel terracotta tiles to be used on top (called a “Cap”) and one on the bottom (called a “Pan”). A second kind of installation is called the Roman Pan system. This is popular in the central Italian regions of Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio, and, as a pan uses a flat tile with raised edges that then catch the familiar barrel cap. It is also used in the southern regions of Italy.

We supply reclaimed antique terracotta roof tiles from three areas of Italy as each have their color and/or color characteristics. The tiles we source tend to be 100 or more years old. The sizes and color of the reclaimed roof tiles are very random and mixed. They were hand made sometimes using people legs to shape them, sometimes using molds where each local artisan had his own mold. Therefore the irregularity in sizes is to be considered a characteristic.

Northern Italian Roof Tiles

These tiles are our best selling option as it offers a perfect color pallet: The core are light red but vary from yellowish to deeper red with different shades to salmon to green and sometimes grey (in rare occasion). The sizes may vary from 16 ½” to 18 ½” in length, with the bigger opening ranging from 6 ¼” to 7 ½” and the smaller opening ranging from 4 ½” to 5 ½”. The reclaimed caps are not drilled and weigh between 4.4lbs and 4.8 lbs each. This is our goto tile for most projects as supply is still good

Tuscan Roof Tiles

Traditionally from Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio, Central Italian roof tiles have a higher content of red in them, and, although you can use the barrels for both caps and pans they are frequently matched with the “Roman Pan”. The sizes and color of the reclaimed roof tiles are very random and mixed. The sizes for the barrel may vary from 16 1/2 “to 18 ½” in length, with the bigger opening ranging from 6 ½” to 7 ½” and the smaller opening ranging from 4 ½” to 5 1/2”. The Roman pans are approximately 13 ½” at the wide end, 12” and the narrow end and 17” long.

Southern Italian Tiles

These are harder to find than other regions but for who want softer peach/salmon pink colors this is a great choice. Smaller than their northern equivalents these tiles from the Italian “heel” of puglia also use the Roman Pan system as in Tuscany. The tiles sizes vary length approx 15”-16”, wider opening 6” to 6 ½”, narrow opening 5 “to 5 ½”. The Roman Pan sizes vary length approx 15”-16”, wider opening 10” to 11”, narrow opening 8“ to 9”.