Wender·Vista
Rubicon
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileItaly
in Emilia-Romagna, between Rimini and Cesena

Rubicon

— the small river a man could not uncross.

— 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 short coastal river in northern Italy, slipping out of the Apennine foothills and across the plain to the Adriatic near Gatteo a Mare. For most of the year it is a quiet rural stream past plane trees and stone bridges. The weight it carries is two thousand years old, named by a single sentence Caesar is said to have spoken on its bank in January of 49 BC.

from the studio
Rubicon
— bring it home

Rubicon, 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 Rubicon

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 Rubicon, called Rubicone in modern Italian, is a short river in Emilia-Romagna that rises in the Apennine foothills and runs about 80 kilometres east-northeast across the coastal plain to the Adriatic Sea near Gatteo a Mare. It passes through Savignano sul Rubicone in the Province of Forlì-Cesena. The modern Rubicone was officially identified with the ancient Rubicon by royal decree in 1933, settling a long dispute among scholars over which of three small rivers north of Rimini bore the historical name.

— informed by Wikipedia, Treccani
— the year

In January of 49 BC, Julius Caesar crossed this river with the 13th Legion, defying the Roman Senate's order to disband his army before re-entering Italy proper. The act began the civil war that ended the Republic. Suetonius records the phrase iacta alea est, the die is cast, spoken at the bank. The crossing is the origin of the English idiom to cross the Rubicon. Two thousand years later the date is still marked in Savignano sul Rubicone with civic events along the riverbank.

— the visit

Savignano sul Rubicone, a town of about 17,000, sits on both banks roughly halfway between Rimini and Cesena along the historic Via Emilia. The Ponte Romano, a single-arch Roman bridge restored after wartime damage in 1944, is the central crossing. The Adriatic coast at Gatteo a Mare and San Mauro Mare lies seven kilometres east. Rimini's Federico Fellini International Airport (RMI) is the nearest air gateway; the Bologna-Ancona rail line stops at Savignano-Rubicone station.

— where
Italy · Province of Forlì-Cesena, Emilia-Romagna
— position
44.1700° N · 12.4500° 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.
0.5 km C
Savignano sul Rubicone
town
20 km SE
Rimini
city
15 km NW
Cesena
city
7 km E
Gatteo a Mare
seaside town
30 km S
Republic of San Marino
microstate
N
Rubicon
Savignano sul Rubicone
Rimini
Cesena
Gatteo a Mare
Republic of San Marino
— common questions

What people ask.

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

The Rubicon, called Rubicone in Italian, is a short coastal river in Emilia-Romagna that runs about 80 kilometres from the Apennine foothills east to the Adriatic Sea near Gatteo a Mare, passing through Savignano sul Rubicone.

In January of 49 BC, Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon with the 13th Legion in defiance of the Roman Senate, triggering the civil war that ended the Roman Republic. The act gave English the phrase to cross the Rubicon.

The historian Suetonius records that Caesar said iacta alea est, the die is cast, as he ordered the crossing. The phrase is often quoted in Latin in its inverted form, alea iacta est.

Three small rivers north of Rimini were candidates for centuries. A royal decree in 1933 formally identified the modern Rubicone, which flows through Savignano sul Rubicone, as the ancient Rubicon.

The river runs roughly 80 kilometres from its source in the Apennine foothills to its mouth on the Adriatic coast at Gatteo a Mare, in the Province of Forlì-Cesena, Emilia-Romagna.

The town of Savignano sul Rubicone, on the Via Emilia between Rimini and Cesena, is the centre point. Rimini's airport (RMI) is the nearest air gateway, and the Bologna-Ancona rail line stops at Savignano-Rubicone station.

— about the piece in your home

It travels well for classics teachers, history readers, and lawyers who think in turning points. The Rubicon is the original point of no return, and the piece carries that weight quietly. A Medium with a handwritten studio note has been a returning gift.

The dusk-water palette reads in classical-traditional, library-modern, and warm Mediterranean rooms. It anchors a study wall above a writing desk, or a hallway with walnut wood and aged brass.

Yes. The recent return of the dedicated study room has brought back history and map art on the wall. A Small above the desk, or a Large on the opposite wall, sits naturally beside leather and bookbindings.

A single Large reads from across the room above a sofa; a 4-tile Mural fills a wider wall. Above a console, a Medium centered, or a 9-tile Mural for a stairwell, works best.

Yes, with Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and handle steam and splash on backsplashes, powder rooms, and shower walls. Glossy is reserved for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough for routine dusting. For kitchen or bathroom installations in Dura Satin or Matte, a mild dish-soap solution is safe; skip abrasive pads and ammonia cleaners.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to the studio, painted by Reid Wender's eye and produced in our Knoxville workshop. We do not license the artwork or sell the files; the only place to buy it is here.

— 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.
— a collection

The Italian Dolomites,
painted slow.

The valleys between Cortina and Val Gardena, the tarns you walk an hour to see, the towers that turn the colour of a banked fire just before dark. Wander the collection by valley, by season, or follow the path Reid walked.

Tre Cime
Braies
Misurina
Sorapis
Cinque Torri
Sassolungo
Marmolada