Wender·Vista
Temple of Olympian Zeus
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileGreece
in central Athens, below the Acropolis

Temple of Olympian Zeus

— — six centuries to build, fifteen columns left standing.

— 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

“Fifteen Corinthian columns hold the field below the Acropolis, all that remain of the largest temple Greece ever built. Peisistratus began the work in the sixth century before Christ. Hadrian finished it nearly seven hundred years later. A storm took the sixteenth column in 1852 and it has lain where it fell since. The Olympieion still keeps its appointment with the morning light. — from the studio

from the studio
Temple of Olympian Zeus
— bring it home

Temple of Olympian Zeus, 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 Temple of Olympian Zeus

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

The Temple of Olympian Zeus, known to Athenians as the Olympieion, stands about 500 metres southeast of the Acropolis in central Athens. It was the largest temple in mainland Greece — roughly 96 metres long by 40 metres wide, with 104 Corinthian columns originally planned around the cella. Construction began under the tyrant Peisistratus in the sixth century BCE, stalled for centuries, and was finally completed under the Roman emperor Hadrian, who dedicated the temple in 131 CE alongside a colossal statue of Zeus.

— the stone

Each column rises roughly 17 metres in Pentelic marble, quarried from Mount Pentelicus northeast of the city — the same vein that built the Parthenon. Sixteen columns stood through the medieval and Ottoman periods; on the night of 26 October 1852 a violent storm toppled the southernmost column, and it has lain in articulated drums on the ground for the 174 years since. The fifteen still standing carry stylised acanthus capitals. The site is fenced but the columns are visible from Vasilissis Olgas Avenue.

— the year

The construction span is one of the longest in classical architecture. Peisistratus laid the foundations around 520 BCE. The Hellenistic king Antiochus IV Epiphanes resumed work in 174 BCE with the architect Cossutius and shifted the design from Doric to Corinthian. Sulla looted columns for Rome in 86 BCE. Augustus paused. Hadrian, who venerated Athens, finished the temple 638 years after it was begun and built the neighbouring Arch of Hadrian to mark the boundary between the old city and his new quarter.

— where
Greece · Athens, Attica
— position
37.9692° N · 23.7331° 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.
1 km NW
Acropolis of Athens
ancient citadel
1 km W
Arch of Hadrian
Roman triumphal arch
1 km E
Panathenaic Stadium
marble stadium
N
Temple of Olympian Zeus
Acropolis of Athens
Arch of Hadrian
Panathenaic Stadium
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Temple of Olympian Zeus — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

The Olympieion is a colossal ruined temple in central Athens, once the largest temple in mainland Greece. Begun in the sixth century BCE and dedicated by the emperor Hadrian in 131 CE, it stood roughly 96 by 40 metres with 104 Corinthian columns.

Fifteen of the original 104 Corinthian columns remain upright. A sixteenth stood until a storm on the night of 26 October 1852 toppled it; the drums have lain in order on the ground ever since and are still visible at the site.

Each column rises about 17 metres in Pentelic marble, quarried from the same Mount Pentelicus vein used for the Parthenon. The capitals are Corinthian, carved with stacked acanthus leaves and stylised volutes.

The Roman emperor Hadrian completed and dedicated the temple in 131 CE, about 638 years after Peisistratus laid the foundations. Hadrian also commissioned the colossal chryselephantine statue of Zeus that stood inside the cella.

The Olympieion sits in central Athens, about 500 metres southeast of the Acropolis and immediately east of the Arch of Hadrian, along Vasilissis Olgas Avenue. The nearest Athens Metro station is Akropoli on Line 2.

Yes. The archaeological site is open daily under the Greek Ministry of Culture and is included in the combined Acropolis ticket. The columns are fenced but plainly visible from the surrounding avenues even outside opening hours.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for customers with family in Athens or the diaspora. The Olympieion is one of the city's quieter monuments, less photographed than the Parthenon but equally Athenian. A Medium or Large with a studio note suits a Greek home.

It sits well in classical-modern, warm minimalist, and Mediterranean rooms. The honey-gold marble tones of the stained-glass treatment carry the colour of the columns at the end of a Mediterranean afternoon.

Above a standard sofa, the single Large lets the column line read as a horizon. A 4-tile Mural opens the field around the columns. A Small or Keepsake suits a writing desk, a bookshelf, or an entryway niche.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any wet or vertical install — both are scratch-resistant and steam-tolerant. The Glossy finish is for framed wall art in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough for routine care. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, so it cannot scratch or fade in normal home use.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original work from our family studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. Reid Wender curates the atlas of places and signs off each one. Nothing is licensed in.

— if this one stayed with you

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