Wender·Vista
Ray
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileIran
south of Tehran, where the old city meets the new

Ray

— — a city older than its capital.

— 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

“Ray sits at the southern edge of Tehran, swallowed by the metropolis but never quite by it. The shrine of Shah Abdol-Azim still pulls pilgrims through the bazaar each Friday. Toghrol Tower stands where it stood in the twelfth century, brick by brick, watching the traffic move past. Some places give way to the cities they spawned. Ray declined. — from the studio

from the studio
Ray
— bring it home

Ray, 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 Ray

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

Ray (Persian: Rey, ancient Rhages) sits in Rey County at the southern lip of Tehran Province, at roughly 1,100 metres above sea level. It is among the oldest continuously inhabited places on the Iranian plateau, mentioned in the Avesta and in the Book of Tobit. For centuries Ray was the larger city; modern Tehran grew up over its northern fields after a Mongol sack in 1220. Today the Tehran Metro Line 1 ends at Shahr-e Rey, and the old city sits inside the capital's southern footprint without losing its name.

— informed by Wikipedia — Ray, Iran
— the stone

Toghrol Tower (Borj-e Toghrol) is the surviving Seljuk landmark of old Ray, a tall cylindrical brick tomb tower built in 1139 for the sultan Toghrol I. Its 24-sided shaft of fired brick rises about 20 metres today; a conical roof and an upper section were lost to earthquakes. The geometry of the buttresses is read as an early Iranian solar calendar by some scholars. It stands a short walk from the shrine, in a quiet municipal park.

— the visit

The shrine of Shah Abdol-Azim al-Hasani is the heart of Ray's pilgrim trade. Abdol-Azim, a fifth-generation descendant of Imam Hasan, died in Ray around 861 CE and was buried where the shrine now stands. The gold-domed complex is one of the most visited Shia shrines in Iran, second only to Mashhad in Tehran-area footfall. Pilgrims come on Fridays. The bazaar that feeds the shrine runs all week, selling sohan, prayer stones, and rosewater from Kashan.

— where
Iran · Rey County, Tehran Province
— elevation
1,100 m · 3,609 ft
— position
35.5933° N · 51.4339° 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.
17 km N
Tehran
capital city
1 km E
Toghrol Tower
Seljuk tomb tower
2 km NE
Cheshmeh Ali
ancient spring
N
Ray
Tehran
Toghrol Tower
Cheshmeh Ali
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Ray is an ancient city at the southern edge of Tehran, known in antiquity as Rhages. It sits in Rey County of Tehran Province at about 1,100 metres elevation and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places on the Iranian plateau.

No. Ray is older. Tehran grew up over the fields north of Ray after Mongol forces sacked the city in 1220. Modern Tehran has since expanded south to absorb Ray within its metropolitan footprint.

Toghrol Tower is a 24-sided Seljuk brick tomb tower built in 1139 for sultan Toghrol I. It stands about 20 metres tall today, its original conical roof lost to earthquakes, and sits in a municipal park in old Ray.

Shah Abdol-Azim al-Hasani, a fifth-generation descendant of the Shia Imam Hasan, who died in Ray around 861 CE. His gold-domed shrine is one of the most visited Shia pilgrimage sites in Iran.

Yes. The city appears as Rhages in the Book of Tobit, where Tobias travels there to recover a deposit of silver. Greek and Roman sources also place it on the road from Ecbatana east.

Tehran Metro Line 1 runs south to Shahr-e Rey station, the line's southern terminus. The shrine and the old bazaar are a short walk from there. By road the trip takes about thirty minutes outside rush hour.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for our customers with family in Tehran. Ray carries weight far beyond its current size — it is in the Avesta, in Tobit, in the Seljuk record. A Small or Medium with a handwritten studio note travels well.

It sits well in Persian-modern, jewel-tone maximalist, and warm Mediterranean rooms. The blues and ochres of the stained-glass treatment carry the colour palette of Iranian tilework without copying it directly.

Above a standard sofa or a long console, the single Large reads as a focal piece. For a wider wall, a 4-tile Mural or 9-tile Mural carries the geometry better. Keepsake and Small suit shelves and nightstands.

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