Hi r/AskEurope!
Pictures of the floor [here](https://www.homie.gr/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/mosaic-saloni-spiti-dapedo-vintage-21.jpg) and [here](https://www.decobook.gr/media/k2/items/cache/e10563e7c17de516da6affac7a41e627_XL.jpg).
In Greece where I’m from, this was the go to floor for most houses up until at least the 80’s. We call it “mosaic”. I wonder if this was used in other european countries as much, or at all and what you call it.
18 comments
In Denmark we call it “terrazzo,” which I believe to the English word as well, and it was super popular once, for over a century, and is currently making a comeback, as part of a larger wave of inspiration taken from the 70es and 80es. It varies, sometimes it is with a pattern, sometimes it is just “plain,” but it was, and is, mainly used in hallways and to a lesser degree wetrooms, but also in living rooms. Personally, I really like it… but I’m a sucker for everything seventies, so maybe I’m not the best judge. It is still quite common to find in newer larger buildings, though usually dulled down.
Yes, they were popular. I think it is called *graniglia* in Italian, but it is more popularly called *pavimento della nonna*, that is *grandma’s floor*, because they are usually in grandmas’ 50/60s apartments/houses.They are a sort of meme also because it is said that when you lose something little on that kind of floor, you won’t be able to find it anymore.
Haha that’s the standard 80s “condo building lobby” flooring in Portugal. I actually have no idea what it is called, though.
Oh yes. Very popular. Especially in old public buildings.
And I believe it’s becoming popular again.
It’s called ‘Terrazzo’ in both Germany and Sweden.
I’m looking at it right now. The whole flat I’m renting has it, except for the bathroom. It’s exceptionally cold in winter, and it doesn’t help cool the house much in summer because there’s a lot of humidity in this part of Spain. I also find the pattern too busy and ugly, and it makes it really hard to find any small objects that fall on it (which does have the advantage of hiding dirt very well).
It was very popular. Luckily its been quite a while since it’s been used for new buildings.ci find it quite horrendous.
Not in homes but in public buildings, yes. Schools, hallways in apartment buildings…
Not really, no.
The majority of our houses are made from wood and therefore have either wood planks like [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/8318/103078318.jpg) or [that](https://www.scandinavianhome.ee/templates/yootheme/cache/skandinaaviastiilk-a56af91f.jpeg), wooden parquet like [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/0866/102870866.jpg) or [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/8356/103338356.jpg) or fake parquet like [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/7786/103197786.jpg), [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/7057/103397057.jpg) or even [that](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/4456/103384456.jpg). Bathrooms are [tiled](https://kv.img-bcg.eu/image/object/4/7568/103097568.jpg), sometimes the floors in hallways or small kitchens, too.
It looks like the stuff we often have on kitchen worktops. Not for flooring – too cold!
Yes, it’s technically known as *pavimento alla veneziana*, or more simply just *veneziana*, i.e. Venice-style floor. Another similar kind of floor is known as *palladiana*, i.e. [Andrea-Palladio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Palladio)-style, basically the same concept but made with [larger stones](https://www.fratellipellizzari.it/files/styles/zoom/public/images/gallery/Pavimento-alla-palladiana-locale-venezia.jpg).
In Finland the hallways and stairways of public buildings and apartment buildings were often made of that in … hmm, I want to say maybe from post-WW2 to maybe 1980s? I have not seen that much in private residences.
Yes, as soon as a country industrializes and abandons its traditional building methods, all countries around are using similar materials. Since buildings are designed by architects, we all follow some industrial trends. Those who are not build under an architect direction are build with whatever is found around, which back in the day was wood and stone, and today is awful concrete masonry and cement (people in Northern Europe wondering what am I talking about).
Hopefully we are seeing a more common use of wood and thickening of thermal insulation all around.
Yes, in the 50s and 60s it was used very often for bathroom floors and countertops. I still have the original kitchen with this countertop and the bathroom floor from 1964. I’m thinking of restoring both of them because I think they could look very nice
“Mosaic” or “Terrazzo” is BY FAR the most popular kind of flooring here.
It’s decreasing as newly built buildings don’t ever use it nowadays (nor since the early 90’s), but still – it was used for more than 2 decades just when there was a housing boom, so I think that’s it’s not unreasonable to estimate that it’s present in >50% of homes.
We call it “Sesame” here because it reminded someone of Sesame Seeds.
We want to be different and it’s called “lastryko”, was popular in ’70s and it’s popular again. Big variety of colours and additives, even solutions to imitate it – tiling with this typo of pattern and micro-concrete.
And to be honest I’m a big fan – when it’s executed properly.
Stone floors are too cold for Russian houses. You might see floors like this in public buildings, but they are usually tiled or covered with PVC.
Only in shopping malls and -70s Commie bunker staircases.
The old supermarket floor? Yes, that’s what most supermarket floors looked like and still look like in those that still stand. I instantly think [Konsum](https://h24-original.s3.amazonaws.com/55107/10285041-6MyNb.jpg) (old name of Coop) when seeing that floor. It’s also common in [Million Programme staircases](https://kbab.koping.se/templates/yootheme/cache/trapphus-775fdc41.webp).