shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileSingapore

at the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait

Pedra Branca

— a white rock the sea keeps lit.

— 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

— 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 small granite outcrop about twenty-four nautical miles east of mainland Singapore, where the strait opens into the South China Sea. Horsburgh Lighthouse has stood on it since 1851, named for a Bombay Marine hydrographer. The Portuguese called it pedra branca, meaning white rock. Tankers pass close enough to read its number. The sea keeps it lit even in the haze.

from the studio

— bring it home

Pedra Branca, 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 Pedra Branca

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

Pedra Branca is a granite outcrop roughly the size of half a football pitch at the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait, about 24 nautical miles east of mainland Singapore. Horsburgh Lighthouse, built between 1850 and 1851 by John Turnbull Thomson, has marked the position for shipping ever since. The International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty to Singapore on 23 May 2008, ending a long dispute with Malaysia over the rock and two nearby features, Middle Rocks and South Ledge. Its Portuguese name simply means white rock, for the bird guano that bleaches the granite.

— informed by Wikipedia, ICJ judgment

— the stone

The rock is fine-grained granite, low and flat enough that a heavy swell breaks across it. Thomson's lighthouse rises 28 metres from the base in dressed granite blocks shipped from Pulau Ubin and Karimun, a Scottish design fitted to an equatorial sea. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore maintains the light, helipad, and a small detachment that lives on the rock in shifts. There is nowhere on the outcrop that is not weather. The granite holds the heat well after the sun is gone.

— informed by Wikipedia

— the visit

Pedra Branca is not open to the public. There is no jetty for visitors and no scheduled boat. The closest a civilian usually gets is the deck of a container ship coming up the strait, where the light shows for a few minutes off the port bow. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore handles all access, and the rock is staffed only by rotating personnel. The place exists in shipping charts, in the ICJ judgment of 23 May 2008, and on the horizon.

— informed by MPA Singapore

— where

Singapore · Singapore

— position

1.3267° N · 104.4061° E

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Pedra Branca — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

At the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait, about 24 nautical miles east of mainland Singapore. It is the easternmost point of Singapore's sovereign territory and a key reference for shipping into the strait.

Pedra branca is Portuguese for white rock. Early navigators named it for the pale guano coating the granite, visible from a distance against the blue of the South China Sea.

Singapore. The International Court of Justice awarded sovereignty on 23 May 2008, ending a long dispute with Malaysia. Middle Rocks went to Malaysia; South Ledge's status depends on territorial waters.

A granite lighthouse built on Pedra Branca between 1850 and 1851, designed by John Turnbull Thomson. It honours hydrographer James Horsburgh and has guided ships through the strait for over 170 years.

No public access. The rock is staffed by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and reached only by official boat or helicopter. Most people see it from passing container ships in the strait.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for Singaporeans and seafarers. Pedra Branca is on every chart of the eastern strait and was the subject of a defining 2008 ICJ case. A Small or Medium with a handwritten studio note travels easily.

The granite-and-sea palette sits comfortably in Coastal-modern, Maritime, and Japandi rooms. The Voynich treatment keeps it warmer than a chart print. Pairs well with teak, brass, and pale linen.

A single Large above a console reads as the focal piece. Above a standard three-seat sofa, a 4-tile Mural or 9-tile Mural balances the wall without crowding the seat.

Yes, in Dura Satin or Matte. Both finishes resist scratching and shrug off steam and splash. The Glossy finish is best kept to framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. Skip abrasives and harsh cleaners. The colour lives in the ceramic surface, so the tile takes everyday wiping without dulling over time.

— if this one stayed with you

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