Kerana Berlin’s Largest Assortment of Tile and Stone

In 1999 Siegfried Nolting opened Kerana, a tile store that offers what is presumably the largest and most varied assortment of ceramic and stone tiling for walls and floors in Berlin, covering 900 m² floor space in Stilwerk. Personally, I find the occasion rather dry- quite in contrary to Mr. Nolting, who is overcome with a fit of enthusiasm as he shows me all imaginable possibilities within the embellishment of walls and floors.

Thanks to modern technology, stoneware can be made to imitate natural materials such as wood or virgin stone so well that it’s difficult to differentiate between it and the original. Finished with the finest technical properties, it lasts longer and more robustly than nature’s own model. Naturally, this also has a positive ecological effect as no chemically dubious sealing needs be involved.

In the expansive showroom you can find everything from handmade Spanish and Victorian tiles to mosaic tiles from Bisazza and Sicis to classics, including the currently hip metro tile and traditionally manufactured tiles from England and Portugal, which are also used in monument preservation. In short, everything considered to have high value on the market. From modern to classic, timeless to playful, there is something here for everyone.

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That includes primer for walls and furniture with fairfaced concrete, metal fillings, and other properties requiring more complex techniques. There are glass tiles on which all sorts of motives can be etched onto, floral mosaics, and dozens of other coverings for walls and floors, the likes of which I’d never heard of before.

At the end of my visit, Siegfried Nolting reveals yet another display. "Do you know what this is? It’s paper-thin slate which, with the help of an archaeological technique, is extracted and demolished along with resin so that it can be hung in thin slices on walls elsewhere." – Incredible!

Constanze Hallensleben

Founder Creme Guides