A generic term for the textured impression found on the underside of a roof tile. The impression is left by the cloth placed between the wooden mold and the clay. The cloth allowed easier removal of the dried clay tile. After the tile was fired, the pattern of the cloth remained. The earliest tiles found with cloth impressions were made during the 7th century. Finely textured cloth, perhaps linen, was used. During the 8th century, the texture of the cloth became coarser. However, in the 9th century, more finely textured cloth was again used. Some tiles show rope marks on the side opposite the cloth marked side, dating from the late 7th century to the end of the 12th century. Rope marks, and the fineness or coarseness of the cloth impressions, aid in judging the age of old roof tiles. Tiles no longer had cloth impressions by the latter quarter of the 16th century.