Wender·Vista
Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileIndia
in Kanchipuram, west of Chennai in Tamil Nadu

Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram

— — sandstone that has held the same prayer for thirteen centuries.

— 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

“The oldest standing temple in Kanchipuram, raised by the Pallava king Rajasimha around the year 700. Soft pink sandstone the colour of an evening sky, with fifty-eight small shrines ringing the main sanctum and traces of original fresco still alive on the inner walls. Morning light comes through the eastern gopuram and crosses the courtyard slowly. The town moves around it; the temple holds still.

from the studio
Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram
— bring it home

Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram, 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 Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram

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 Kailasanathar Temple stands on the western edge of Kanchipuram, about 75 kilometres south-west of Chennai in the state of Tamil Nadu. It was commissioned by the Pallava king Narasimhavarman II, also called Rajasimha, and completed around 705 CE, making it the oldest surviving structure in a city of temples. It is dedicated to Shiva in the form Kailasanatha, lord of Mount Kailash, and is built largely from sandstone with a granite base.

— the stone

The temple is built of soft pink and grey sandstone on a granite plinth, a Pallava combination that gave the carvers room for fine detail the harder South Indian granites do not allow. Fifty-eight small subsidiary shrines ring the inner prakara, each holding a different aspect of Shiva. Fragments of the original lime-and-mineral fresco still hold colour inside the cells, the earliest surviving wall painting tradition in Tamil Nadu. The vimana above the sanctum rises in stepped tiers crowned by a square shikhara.

— the visit

The temple is open daily from about 6:00 in the morning to noon, then again from 4:00 in the afternoon until 8:00 in the evening. Entry is free; photography of the inner sanctum is restricted. Kanchipuram is reached from Chennai by the Chennai-Bangalore Highway in roughly two hours, or by train to Kanchipuram Junction. The temple sits about two kilometres west of the railway station and is a short auto-rickshaw ride from the better-known Ekambareswarar Temple.

— where
India · Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu
— elevation
83 m · 272 ft
— position
12.8466° N · 79.6886° 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 E
Ekambareswarar Temple
Shiva temple
2 km E
Kamakshi Amman Temple
Devi temple
3 km E
Vaikunta Perumal Temple
Vishnu temple
75 km NE
Chennai
state capital
N
Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram
Ekambareswarar Temple
Kamakshi Amman Temple
Vaikunta Perumal Temple
Chennai
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Kailasanathar Temple, Kanchipuram — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

On the western edge of Kanchipuram, in Tamil Nadu, southern India. The city sits about 75 kilometres south-west of Chennai and is reachable by road in roughly two hours.

It was built by the Pallava king Rajasimha (Narasimhavarman II) and completed around 705 CE, which makes it the oldest standing structure in Kanchipuram and one of the earliest stone temples in Tamil Nadu.

Shiva, in the form Kailasanatha, the lord of Mount Kailash. The main sanctum holds a sixteen-faceted prismatic lingam; fifty-eight smaller shrines around the prakara hold other aspects of Shiva.

Soft pink and grey sandstone set on a granite plinth. The combination is a Pallava signature and allowed the finer carving and the lime-based wall paintings still visible in the inner cells.

Yes. Fragments of the original Pallava-era frescoes survive in the subsidiary shrines, in earth pigments on a lime ground. They are among the earliest surviving wall paintings in Tamil Nadu.

Roughly 6:00 in the morning to noon and 4:00 to 8:00 in the evening, daily. Entry is free. Photography is allowed in the outer courtyard; the inner sanctum is restricted.

— about the piece in your home

Yes, especially for a family from the Kanchipuram or Chennai area. The temple is one of the city's most loved Shiva sites. A Medium for a prayer corner or a Small for a study both carry well.

Warm South Indian interiors, terracotta-and-teak rooms, and minimalist spaces that lean on a single warm-toned focal piece. The pink-sandstone palette holds against rosewood, brass, and unbleached cotton.

Yes. Heritage-modern rooms increasingly pair a single grounded place-piece with restrained furniture. A named Pallava temple reads as considered rather than decorative.

A single Large for a console or hallway niche. Above a sofa, a 4-tile Mural carries the courtyard width. For a stairwell or great-room wall, a 9-tile Mural holds the full vimana.

Yes, in our Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and rated for vertical wet installations, including humid bathroom walls and kitchen splashbacks.

A soft microfibre cloth, lightly damp with water. The colour is set into the ceramic surface and will not lift with cleaning. Avoid abrasive pads or solvent sprays.

Yes. Reid Wender curates and the studio finishes every tile in-house in Knoxville, Tennessee. No licensing, no third-party prints, no other rooms carry these images.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.