Wender·Vista
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileCanada
on the prairie escarpment of southern Alberta

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

— — a cliff that fed a people for six thousand years.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.
— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand
— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines
— Beside the kettle, a 12-inch propped
— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall
— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround
— a note from the studio

“A sandstone cliff at the edge of the Porcupine Hills, used by the Blackfoot to drive bison off the rim for nearly six thousand years. The bone bed below runs eleven metres deep. The interpretive centre, cut into the cliff face since 1987, tells the story in the words of the people whose ancestors did the work. The wind off the prairie does not stop. — from the studio

from the studio
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
— bring it home

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?
One tile — square or rectangle.
How big?
the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand
6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb
Surface finish
A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.
How it sits
A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.
$58
Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.
— size
6 × 6 in
15 cm
— weighs
1.6 lb
solid in the hand
— surface
ceramic, hand-finished
art rests beneath a thin glossy finish
— from
Knoxville, TN
our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies
— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.
— the place

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump sits at the eastern edge of the Porcupine Hills in southwestern Alberta, about 18 km northwest of Fort Macleod. It is one of the oldest, largest, and best-preserved bison jumps in North America, used by Plains peoples from roughly 4000 BCE until the mid-19th century. The site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981 for its testimony to a prehistoric hunting practice carried out for almost six thousand years.

— the stone

The kill site is a sandstone escarpment roughly 10 metres high at the foot of the Porcupine Hills. Behind it stretches a broad gathering basin and the drive lanes of stone cairns, some still visible, that Blackfoot hunters used to funnel bison toward the rim. Below the cliff, the bone deposit reaches eleven metres in depth, the accumulated record of thousands of hunts. Archaeology at the site has been ongoing since the 1960s.

— the visit

The interpretive centre, opened in 1987, is built into the cliff face on seven levels and operated in partnership with Blackfoot Elders. It is reached by Highway 785 from Fort Macleod and is open year-round, with reduced winter hours. Walking trails run along the top of the cliff and down to the kill site below. The site is administered by Alberta Culture and Tourism as a provincial historic site.

— where
Canada · Fort Macleod, Alberta
— within
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
— elevation
1,118 m · 3,668 ft
— position
49.7503° N · 113.6228° W
— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.
18 km SE
Fort Macleod
historic town
5 km W
Porcupine Hills
highland range
110 km S
Waterton Lakes National Park
national park
N
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
Fort Macleod
Porcupine Hills
Waterton Lakes National Park
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

It is in southwestern Alberta, Canada, about 18 km northwest of the town of Fort Macleod, at the eastern edge of the Porcupine Hills. The cliff faces east over the open prairie.

The name comes from a Blackfoot story of a young man who watched the hunt from beneath the cliff and was killed by the falling bison. In Blackfoot, the site is called Estipah-skikikini-kots.

Archaeological evidence shows the jump was used from roughly 4000 BCE until the mid-19th century, a span of almost six thousand years. The bone deposit below the cliff reaches about eleven metres deep.

Yes. Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump was inscribed by UNESCO in 1981 as a testimony to a prehistoric hunting practice unique in scale and continuity in North America.

The interpretive centre and site are operated by Alberta Culture and Tourism in partnership with Blackfoot Elders. The centre, opened in 1987, is built into the cliff face on seven levels.

Hunters used stone cairn drive lanes, often kilometres long, to funnel bison herds toward the cliff edge. Skilled runners called buffalo runners guided the lead animals over the rim, and the herd followed.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for our customers from southern Alberta and for Blackfoot recipients. The piece honours the site rather than spectacle. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio is the usual choice.

The prairie ochres and stained-glass blues sit well with Mountain-modern, Western Heritage, and Earth-tone Maximalist rooms. It reads as elemental and grounded rather than decorative.

Yes. The current direction in heritage-land décor favours art rooted in specific land and people rather than generic Western imagery. A named UNESCO site with deep Indigenous history reads as considered.

A single Large (24x24 inches) sits well above most sofas and consoles. For a horizontal wall, a 4-tile Mural opens the cliff into a wider composition; a 9-tile Mural is for a feature wall.

Yes. Choose the Dura Satin or Matte finish for moisture-prone rooms. Both are scratch-resistant and read softer than the Glossy show-piece finish meant for framed wall art.

A microfibre cloth with water is enough. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, so it will not lift or fade with normal household cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is original to our studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. There is no licensing and no third-party imagery; Reid Wender is the curator and the eye behind every piece.

— if this one stayed with you

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