Wender·Vista
Mount Kazbek
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileRussia
on the Caucasus ridge above the Darial Gorge

Mount Kazbek

— — a snow cone the road bends to keep in view.

— 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 dormant stratovolcano on the Greater Caucasus crest, 5,054 metres, where the Russian republic of North Ossetia meets Georgia. The Georgian Military Road threads the Darial Gorge below it; the small church of Tsminda Sameba sits on a green shoulder at Stepantsminda, framing the peak in nearly every photograph ever taken of the mountain. In Georgian myth the chained giant Amirani still waits inside it. from the studio

from the studio
Mount Kazbek
— bring it home

Mount Kazbek, 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 Mount Kazbek

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

Mount Kazbek, known in Georgian as Mkinvartsveri (the ice-crested), rises to 5,054 metres on the Greater Caucasus watershed where Russia's republic of North Ossetia-Alania meets Georgia's Mtskheta-Mtianeti region. It is the seventh-highest summit of the Caucasus and a dormant stratovolcano, with its last eruption dated to around 750 BCE. Glaciers cover an estimated 135 square kilometres of its flanks, feeding the Terek and Aragvi river systems and shaping the Darial Gorge below.

— informed by Wikipedia
— the year

The classic climbing window is July through September, when the upper Gergeti and Devdoraki glaciers settle and the route from Stepantsminda over the Maili plateau opens. Winter buries the upper road in snow and avalanches close long sections of the Georgian Military Road. The local pilgrimage to Tsminda Sameba peaks in summer; in autumn the village of Stepantsminda turns gold along the Tergi river before the first heavy snows close the season.

— informed by Kazbegi National Park
— the stone

The peak is built of andesitic lava flows from successive late-Quaternary eruptions, stacked over older Caucasus basement rock. The small Gergeti Trinity Church on the 2,170-metre shoulder above Stepantsminda was built in the 14th century from local trachyte and granite. For centuries it served as the high refuge for Mtskheta's church treasures during invasions. Today it is one of the most recognised silhouettes in the southern Caucasus, set against Kazbek's snow.

— where
Russia · North Ossetia-Alania / Mtskheta-Mtianeti border
— elevation
5,054 m · 16,581 ft
— position
42.6975° N · 44.5183° 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.
5 km SE
Stepantsminda
mountain village
5 km S
Gergeti Trinity Church
monastery
10 km E
Darial Gorge
gorge
N
Mount Kazbek
Stepantsminda
Gergeti Trinity Church
Darial Gorge
— common questions

What people ask.

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

Kazbek stands on the Greater Caucasus watershed at the border of Russia's North Ossetia-Alania republic and Georgia's Mtskheta-Mtianeti region, above the village of Stepantsminda and the Darial Gorge.

The summit reaches 5,054 metres, about 16,581 feet, making Kazbek the seventh-highest peak of the Caucasus and one of the eight highest in the wider European mountain system.

Yes. Kazbek is a dormant stratovolcano whose most recent confirmed eruption is dated to roughly 750 BCE. Its flanks are still capped by active glaciers covering some 135 square kilometres.

Gergeti Trinity, or Tsminda Sameba, is a 14th-century stone church at 2,170 metres on a shoulder of Kazbek. It has historically sheltered relics from Mtskheta during periods of invasion.

The standard window is July through September, when the upper glaciers are most stable. Winter ascents are made but are technically demanding and exposed to avalanches across the Maili plateau.

In Georgian myth, the giant Amirani, a Prometheus figure, is chained inside the mountain for stealing fire from the gods. The legend is among the oldest recorded folk traditions in the Caucasus.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The piece centres the snow cone as seen from the Gergeti shoulder, the view most climbers carry home. A Medium or Large reads strongly in a study or hallway.

The cold whites and deep blues sit in Alpine-modern, Mountain-modern, and quiet-Scandinavian rooms. It also pairs with dark walnut frames and warm wool textiles.

Yes. The stained-glass linework gives the snow and rock a hand-finished weight that works alongside stone, charred timber, and the muted palettes Alpine-modern rooms tend to lean on.

A single Large carries a sofa wall on its own. A four-tile Mural extends the ridge line across a longer span; a nine-tile Mural reads as a full feature wall.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes are scratch-resistant and suited to backsplashes, shower surrounds, and other vertical wet installations.

A microfibre cloth and water. The colour rests inside the ceramic surface beneath a thin glossy finish, so no oils, polishes, or specialised cleaners are needed.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is curated by Reid Wender and hand-finished in our Knoxville studio. The work is not licensed and is not sold through any other outlet.

— 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.