A wonderful hand-painted Italian Ceramic tile to adorn your wall. Can be set into a kitchen backsplash. Includes a hook on back for hanging. 10x20 cm - 3.9 x 7.9 inchesMade by Bottega degli Artisti.St. Nicholas is celebrated as the patron saint of several classes of people, especially, in the East, of sailors and in the West of children. The first of these patronage is most likely due to the legend that during his lifetime, he appeared to storm tossed mariners who invoked his aid off the coast of Lycia and brought them safely to port. Sailors in the Aegean and Ionian seas, following a common Eastern custom, had their "star of St. Nicholas" and wished one another a good voyage in the phrase "May St. Nicholas hold the tiller."The legend of the "three children" is credited to his patronage of children and various observances, ecclesiastical and secular, connected there with; such were the boy bishop and especially in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands, the giving of presents in his name at Christmas time.Mattonella are hand-painted Italian Ceramic Tiles. Bottega degli Artisti features an assortment of Mattonelle in Professions, Saints & Botanical designs and can custom make any design of your liking. Bottega degli Artisti is very famous in Italy and abroad, being one of the best producer of pottery in Castelli. Castelli is a little village in the centre of Italy, just close to the Gran Sasso Mountain. Castelli is best known for its, a form of decorative ceramic, which were collected by the nobility of Europe for centuries and which were at their pinnacle from the 16th through 18th century and are still produced today by local artists. Castelli majolica was a favorite dinnerware of Russian Tsars. One of the most valued collections of Castelli ceramics is now housed at the Winter Palace of the Hermitage State Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.