Wender·Vista
Bahawalpur
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tilePakistan
on the edge of the Cholistan Desert, in southern Punjab

Bahawalpur

— — the colour the desert keeps after the sun is gone.

— 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 of palaces at the edge of the Cholistan sands. Noor Mahal still stands in the centre, its yellow stucco holding the late light long after the bazaars have closed. The Sutlej runs just to the north. Out past the suburbs the desert begins, and so does a chain of forts the Abbasi nawabs left along the old caravan road south to Derawar. from the studio

from the studio
Bahawalpur
— bring it home

Bahawalpur, 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 Bahawalpur

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

Bahawalpur is a city in southern Punjab on the left bank of the Sutlej River, founded in 1748 by Nawab Bahawal Khan I as the capital of the Bahawalpur princely state. The state acceded to Pakistan in 1947 and was merged into West Pakistan in 1955. The city sits at the threshold of the Cholistan Desert, a 26,000-square-kilometre extension of the Thar that runs south toward Derawar Fort. Population is roughly 800,000, the twelfth-largest in Pakistan. Lal Suhanra National Park, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, lies about 35 km east.

— the stone

Noor Mahal was completed in 1872 for Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan IV, an Italianate yellow-stucco palace of 32 rooms. The Abbasi nawabs left a chain of buildings across the city: Sadiq Garh Palace at Dera Nawab Sahib, the Darbar Mahal of 1905, the Gulzar Mahal. Out past the cultivated belt the stone takes a different form. Derawar Fort, a square sandstone keep about 100 km south in the Cholistan, has forty bastions and walls roughly thirty metres high. The present fort was rebuilt by the Abbasis in the eighteenth century on far older foundations.

— the season

The year here divides cleanly. Summer runs April through September with daytime temperatures regularly above 45°C and June highs nearing 50; the bazaars compress around dawn and dusk, and the desert is impassable to all but the camel herders who follow the seasonal wells. From October the air dries and cools. By February the Cholistan Jeep Rally runs out of Derawar Fort, drawing tens of thousands of spectators. The cotton and mango harvests finish before the heat returns. Winter mornings can hold a thin fog off the Sutlej; afternoons stay in the low 20s.

— where
Pakistan · Bahawalpur, Punjab
— elevation
116 m · 381 ft
— position
29.3956° N · 71.6722° 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.
1 km centre
Noor Mahal
palace
100 km S
Derawar Fort
desert fort
35 km E
Lal Suhanra National Park
biosphere reserve
30 km N
Sadiq Garh Palace
palace
75 km SW
Uch Sharif
Sufi shrine town
N
Bahawalpur
Noor Mahal
Derawar Fort
Lal Suhanra National Park
Sadiq Garh Palace
Uch Sharif
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Bahawalpur sits in southern Punjab, Pakistan, on the left bank of the Sutlej River and at the northern edge of the Cholistan Desert. It is roughly 400 km south of Lahore and is the capital of Bahawalpur Division.

The city is known for the palaces of the Abbasi nawabs — Noor Mahal, Sadiq Garh, Darbar Mahal — and for sitting at the threshold of the Cholistan Desert. Derawar Fort lies 100 km south.

Noor Mahal was completed in 1872 during the reign of Nawab Sadiq Muhammad Khan IV. It is an Italianate-influenced palace of 32 rooms and now operates as a heritage site under the Pakistan Army.

October through March is the only comfortable window. Summer temperatures regularly exceed 45°C and June highs can approach 50. The Cholistan Jeep Rally at Derawar Fort runs in February each year.

Yes. Bahawalpur State was founded in 1748 by Nawab Bahawal Khan I, ruled by the Abbasi dynasty, and remained a princely state under British paramountcy until acceding to Pakistan in 1947. It merged into West Pakistan in 1955.

Derawar Fort lies about 100 km south of Bahawalpur on the Cholistan track. The fort has forty bastions and walls roughly thirty metres high, rebuilt in its present form by the Abbasis in the eighteenth century.

— about the piece in your home

It has been a meaningful gift for customers with Cholistan ties. The Abbasi palaces and the desert horizon are deep local references. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio carries well.

The yellow-ochre and desert palette suits warm Mediterranean, Mughal-revival, and earth-tone Maximalist rooms. It also reads against deep terracotta walls or against the cool plaster of a Moroccan-influenced interior.

A single Large reads well above a console. Above a standard sofa, a 4-tile Mural fills the wall comfortably; a 9-tile Mural becomes the room's centrepiece. Mockups for each are on the listing.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for any wet or splash-prone wall — backsplash, shower surround, powder room. The colour lives in the surface and will not lift with humidity.

A microfibre cloth and plain water. Stubborn marks come off with a drop of mild soap. Skip abrasive pads and solvents — the surface is durable, but ammonia and bleach can dull the finish over time.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to the studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. Reid Wender is the curator. The work is hand-finished in-house and is not licensed from any third party.

— 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.