Wender·Vista
Turkistan
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileKazakhstan
on the northern edge of the Karatau steppe, southern Kazakhstan

Turkistan

— — the dome Timur left unfinished on purpose.

— 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 city on the old caravan road from Samarkand to the steppe. The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi stands above it, the largest brick dome in Central Asia and the work Timur began in 1389 and left unfinished when he died. The turquoise tilework on the south façade is the colour Samarkand wears. From the studio.

from the studio
Turkistan
— bring it home

Turkistan, 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 Turkistan

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

Turkistan sits on the north bank of the Syr Darya basin at the foot of the Karatau range in southern Kazakhstan, about 165 km northwest of Shymkent. The city was the capital of the Kazakh Khanate from the 16th to the 18th century and the spiritual centre of Turkic Islam in the region. In 2018 it became the administrative capital of the renamed Turkistan Region. Its population is roughly 165,000, and a high-speed rail link now ties it back to Shymkent.

— the stone

The Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi was commissioned by Timur in 1389 over the grave of the 12th-century Sufi poet Yasawi. Its main dome spans about 18 m, the largest unreinforced brick dome in Central Asia, and the south façade carries the floral kufic tilework that gave Samarkand its turquoise vocabulary. Timur died in 1405 before the entry portal was finished; the bare brick of the west face was left as he left it. UNESCO inscribed the site in 2003.

— informed by UNESCO World Heritage
— the visit

The mausoleum complex sits on a low rise inside a walled archaeological reserve, open daily from 9:00 to 18:00. Friday prayers fill the inner chamber; non-Muslim visitors are welcome to enter outside prayer times and are asked to remove shoes and cover their head. The 2017 Karavansaray cultural park to the east holds the new amphitheatre and a reconstructed merchant caravan square. Air Astana flies daily from Almaty and Astana to Hazret Sultan International Airport, 8 km south of the centre.

— informed by Kazakhstan Tourism
— where
Kazakhstan · Turkistan Region
— elevation
219 m · 719 ft
— position
43.2970° N · 68.2720° 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.
at the lake
Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi
Timurid mausoleum
70 km SE
Otrar
Silk Road ruin
165 km SE
Shymkent
regional capital
N
Turkistan
Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi
Otrar
Shymkent
— common questions

What people ask.

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

In southern Kazakhstan, about 165 km northwest of Shymkent on the north side of the Syr Darya basin. It is the capital of the Turkistan Region and sits at about 219 m elevation.

It was the capital of the Kazakh Khanate from the 16th to the 18th century and remains the spiritual centre of Turkic Islam in the region. Many Kazakh khans are buried near the Yasawi mausoleum.

A 12th-century Sufi poet and teacher whose Diwan-i Hikmat shaped Turkic Islamic mysticism. Timur commissioned the mausoleum in 1389 over his grave, replacing an earlier shrine on the site.

Timur died in 1405 before the entry portal was completed. The bare brick west face was deliberately left as he left it. UNESCO inscribed the site as World Heritage in 2003.

The main dome spans about 18 m, the largest unreinforced brick dome in Central Asia. Its turquoise tile was the prototype for the brighter palette Timur later carried back to Samarkand.

Air Astana flies daily from Almaty and Astana to Hazret Sultan International Airport, 8 km south of the city. A high-speed rail link also runs to Shymkent in about two hours.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for customers with family in Kazakhstan and across the wider Turkic world. The mausoleum reads as home in a single image. A Medium with a studio note travels well.

The turquoise tile and warm brick read well in Maximalist interiors, in Jewel-tone rooms with deep rugs, and in modern spaces that lean toward Silk Road or Central Asian colour.

Jewel-tone Maximalist continues to absorb Central Asian colour: turquoise, ochre, lapis, dark wood. The Turkistan tile sits inside that direction rather than the muted neutral palette.

Above a standard sofa we recommend a single Large, or a 4-tile Mural for a wider wall. Above a console a Medium reads well; for a long entry hall a 9-tile Mural carries it.

Yes. For a bathroom or kitchen wall we recommend the Dura Satin or Matte finish, which is scratch-resistant and handles steam well. The Glossy finish is for drier rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with plain water is enough. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, so it will not lift with regular cleaning.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to our studio in Knoxville, Tennessee, chosen and finished by Reid Wender. We do not license artwork from third parties.

— if this one stayed with you

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