Wender·Vista
Temple of Venus and Roma
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileItaly
on the Velia, between the Forum and the Colosseum

Temple of Venus and Roma

— — a temple that learned to stand as ruin.

— 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 largest temple ancient Rome ever built, raised by Hadrian on the ridge above the Forum. Two cellas placed back to back, Venus facing the Colosseum, Roma facing the old city. What stands now are coffered apses, brick and travertine, open to the sky. Tourists drift past on the way down from the Palatine. — from the studio

from the studio
Temple of Venus and Roma
— bring it home

Temple of Venus and Roma, 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 Venus and Roma

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 sits on the Velia, the ridge that once divided the Roman Forum from the valley of the Colosseum. Emperor Hadrian designed it himself; construction began in 121 CE and the dedication came under Antoninus Pius around 141 CE. It measured roughly 110 by 53 metres, making it the largest temple in the city. A fire under Maxentius in 307 destroyed the original, and the surviving brick apses and coffered vaults are largely his rebuild. The Parco archeologico del Colosseo manages access today.

— the stone

Two cellas placed back to back share a single rectangular shell, an unusual plan that let Venus Felix face the Flavian Amphitheatre while Roma Aeterna faced the Sacred Way. Pink granite columns from Egypt once ringed the porticoes; broken shafts still lie along the platform. The coffered half-domes that remain over the apses were copied widely after the Renaissance rediscovered them. Travertine paving, brick faced in marble revetment now stripped, and the long rise of stairs toward the Arch of Titus give the ruin its scale.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the visit

The temple platform lies inside the Roman Forum and Palatine archaeological park, entered from the Colosseum side or via the Via Sacra. A single combined ticket covers the Forum, the Palatine, and the Colosseum and is valid for one entry over twenty-four hours. The site opens around 09:00 daily; closing shifts with the season. Late afternoon light catches the eastern apse and the surviving coffered vault. The nearest Metro stop is Colosseo on Line B, two minutes from the park entrance.

— where
Italy · Rome, Lazio
— within
Parco archeologico del Colosseo
— position
41.8911° N · 12.4889° 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.
0.1 km W
Arch of Titus
Roman triumphal arch
0.2 km E
Colosseum
Roman amphitheatre
0.3 km SE
Arch of Constantine
Roman triumphal arch
0.3 km W
Roman Forum
archaeological site
0.4 km SW
Palatine Hill
archaeological site
N
Temple of Venus and Roma
Arch of Titus
Colosseum
Arch of Constantine
Roman Forum
Palatine Hill
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Construction began under Hadrian in 121 CE and the dedication took place around 141 CE, under his successor Antoninus Pius. A fire in 307 destroyed much of it; Maxentius rebuilt the surviving apses.

One half was dedicated to Venus Felix, mythical mother of Aeneas and ancestor of Rome; the other to Roma Aeterna, the personified city. Placing them back to back made the temple a statement about Rome's origin and permanence.

Hadrian designed it himself. The architect Apollodorus of Damascus is said to have criticised the proportions, and the story, told by Cassius Dio, ends with Apollodorus exiled and later executed by the emperor.

On the Velia ridge, at the eastern end of the Roman Forum and immediately west of the Colosseum. It sits between the Arch of Titus and the Flavian Amphitheatre, inside the archaeological park.

The brick cores of two semicircular apses, fragments of the coffered half-domes Maxentius added in the early fourth century, the rectangular platform, scattered granite column drums, and the stair foundations facing both directions.

Yes. Access is included with the combined Colosseum, Forum, and Palatine ticket. Opening times follow the Forum's seasonal schedule, with the last entry an hour before closing.

— about the piece in your home

It tends to land well with someone who has spent time on the Via Sacra. The temple is one of the quieter ruins between the Forum and the Colosseum. A Small or Medium reads as recognition, not postcard.

The treatment in warm ochres and travertine reads with Old World Maximalist, Italian Modern, and Library Classical. It also holds its own beside dark green or terracotta walls in a study or dining room.

Yes. Roman ruins as wall art moved from grand-tour engravings into current Library Classical and Italian Maximalist rooms. The stained-glass treatment gives the subject contemporary colour without losing the architecture.

A single Large reads well above a console table. Above a full sofa, a four-tile Mural or nine-tile Mural carries the wall. The Medium is the sweet spot for a bedroom or study.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and rated for vertical installation in wet rooms. Glossy is reserved for framed wall pieces away from steam.

Microfibre cloth and water. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, beneath a thin protective finish, so it will not fade or lift with normal cleaning.

Yes. Every piece in the WenderVista atlas is curated and finished by Reid Wender in the Knoxville studio. We do not license imagery from outside artists.

— 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