shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileEgypt

in Upper Egypt, on the west bank of the Nile

Asyut

Name: Asyut — on ceramic tile, by WenderVista
Brand: WenderVista

— — the city the river has always passed.

— 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

— 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

“The largest city in Upper Egypt between Cairo and Luxor, set on the west bank of the Nile where the valley narrows. Asyut has been a market town for the desert caravans crossing to Kharga and the Western Oases for at least three thousand years. Coptic monasteries hold the cliffs west of the city; the river barrage, finished in 1902, holds the water.

from the studio

— bring it home

Asyut, 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 Asyut

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

Asyut sits on the west bank of the Nile in Upper Egypt, roughly 375 kilometres south of Cairo and 200 kilometres north of Luxor. The city is the capital of Asyut Governorate and counts around 470,000 residents, making it the largest urban centre in Upper Egypt above Sohag. The valley narrows here as the river bends; the surrounding limestone cliffs of the Gebel Asyut al-Gharbi rise sharply on both sides. The Asyut Barrage, completed by British engineers in 1902, anchors the city's irrigation network.

— informed by Wikipedia, Britannica

— the stone

The cliffs west of Asyut hold one of the densest concentrations of Coptic Christian sites in Egypt. The Monastery of the Virgin Mary at Durunka, built into the rock face above the floodplain, draws the largest Coptic pilgrimage of the year each August, marking the Holy Family's traditional southernmost stop on the Flight into Egypt. Nearby Deir el-Muharraq, founded in the fourth century, keeps an altar said to have served the Holy Family for six months. The pre-Christian necropolis of Asyut, with Middle Kingdom tombs of the local nomarchs, lies on the same ridge.

— informed by Wikipedia: Durunka

— the year

Asyut's calendar turns on the Moulid al-Adra at Durunka, the two-week Coptic pilgrimage to the Monastery of the Virgin Mary that ends on 21 August. The festival draws crowds reported above a million across its run, the largest Christian gathering in the Middle East. Pilgrims sleep in tents along the cliff base, the cliff-cut church holds vigils through the night, and the city below absorbs the influx. The smaller moulid of Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi and the weekly Thursday camel market at Dar al-Salam shape the rest of the year.

— informed by Wikipedia: Coptic pilgrimage

— where

Egypt · Asyut, Asyut Governorate

— position

27.1809° N · 31.1837° E

— 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.

2 km N

Asyut Barrage

weir

10 km SW

Monastery of the Virgin Mary, Durunka

Coptic monastery

45 km NW

Deir el-Muharraq

Coptic monastery

50 km W

Meir tombs

rock-cut tombs

Asyut

Asyut Barrage

Monastery of the Virgin Mary, Durunka

Deir el-Muharraq

Meir tombs

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Asyut — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

On the west bank of the Nile in Upper Egypt, roughly 375 kilometres south of Cairo and 200 kilometres north of Luxor. It is the capital of Asyut Governorate and the largest city in Upper Egypt.

Its position as the historical caravan terminus between the Nile and the Western Desert oases, its Coptic monasteries in the western cliffs, and the 1902 Asyut Barrage that anchors irrigation across Middle Egypt.

The city proper holds roughly 470,000 residents, and the surrounding Asyut Governorate counts about 4.5 million. It is the largest urban centre between Cairo and Luxor along the Nile valley.

A two-week Coptic Christian pilgrimage to the Monastery of the Virgin Mary in the cliffs southwest of Asyut, ending on 21 August. It commemorates the Holy Family's southernmost stop on the Flight into Egypt.

A masonry weir across the Nile completed in 1902 by the British engineer Sir William Willcocks. It feeds the Ibrahimiya Canal, the longest irrigation canal in Egypt, and remains a working part of the water system.

The site has been occupied since at least the Old Kingdom. As Zawty it was the capital of the 13th Upper Egyptian nome, and the Middle Kingdom tombs of its nomarchs are cut into the western cliffs above the modern city.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for Asyuti families, Coptic households, and travellers who have stopped at Durunka or Deir el-Muharraq. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio travels nicely.

The desert-and-river palette sits well in Mediterranean, Eclectic-Levantine, and warm Minimalist rooms. Pair the Large with limestone, terracotta, or unbleached linen.

Yes. The current move toward earthen ochres and clay tones suits the piece. A 4-tile Mural reads as a quiet centrepiece in a room built around natural plaster, oak, or unbleached textiles.

A Large fills most consoles. Above a three-seat sofa, the 4-tile Mural sits well; for a long sectional or a wide entry wall, the 9-tile Mural carries the room.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for vertical installations in bathrooms, kitchens, and showers. The colour lives in the ceramic and holds up to steam and sun.

A microfibre cloth and water. The thin glossy finish wipes clean; Dura Satin and Matte resist scratching and need nothing beyond a soft cloth.

Yes. Every WenderVista tile is painted in-house by Reid Wender and hand-finished at the Knoxville studio. No licensing, no outside catalog behind it.

— if this one stayed with you