shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileSwitzerland

across the Reuss in Lucerne's old town

Chapel Bridge

— — the bridge that learned to come back.

— 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 covered wooden footbridge across the Reuss in Lucerne, with a stone water tower set into its line. The first timbers went down in the early 14th century, making it among the oldest wooden bridges in Europe. A fire on the night of 18 August 1993 destroyed most of the span and many of its painted ceiling panels; the bridge was rebuilt within eight months. The old town reads as a postcard around it.

from the studio

— bring it home

Chapel Bridge, 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 Chapel Bridge

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

Kapellbrücke crosses the Reuss in central Lucerne, Switzerland, connecting the old town on the north bank to the southern bank near the lake outlet. It was built around 1333 as part of the city's defences, originally about 270 metres long; today's reconstructed span runs roughly 204 metres after 19th-century shortenings at the southern end. The octagonal Wasserturm, a 13th-century stone water tower 34 metres tall, stands midstream and predates the bridge itself. The interior carries triangular ceiling panels painted in the 17th century by Hans Heinrich Wägmann.

— informed by Wikipedia, Luzern Tourismus

— the stone

The Wasserturm is older than the bridge: a freestanding octagonal tower from the early 1300s that has served as treasury, archive, prison, and torture chamber over its life. It is built of local sandstone, rises 34 metres, and is now leased to the city's artillery association. The bridge timbers around it have been replaced and replaced again, most recently after the 1993 fire, but the tower has stood through every rebuilding. It is the most photographed structure in Switzerland after the Matterhorn.

— informed by Wikipedia

— the year

A fire on the night of 18 August 1993 destroyed about two-thirds of the bridge and 78 of the original 158 ceiling panels. Lucerne rebuilt within eight months, reopening in April 1994; thirty surviving panels were restored and copies of others reinstalled. The bridge today carries about thirty painted panels in their original positions. The episode is the reason locals will tell you the bridge is rebuilt rather than old, and why the new timbers still smell faintly of resin when the sun is on them.

— informed by Luzern Tourismus

— where

Switzerland · Lucerne, Canton of Lucerne

— elevation

434 m · 1,424 ft

— position

47.0517° N · 8.3083° 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

Wasserturm

stone water tower

at the lake

Jesuitenkirche

baroque church

1 km N

Musegg Wall

medieval rampart

at the lake

Lake Lucerne

alpine lake

Chapel Bridge

Wasserturm

Jesuitenkirche

Musegg Wall

Lake Lucerne

— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Chapel Bridge — and about bringing the piece home.

— about the place

Construction began around 1333, making it one of Europe's oldest covered wooden bridges. A fire in August 1993 destroyed much of the span; the rebuilt bridge reopened in April 1994.

The current reconstructed span is about 204 metres. The original, before sections at the southern end were removed in the 19th century, was roughly 270 metres long.

The Wasserturm, an octagonal stone water tower from the early 14th century, 34 metres tall. It predates the bridge and has served as treasury, archive, prison, and torture chamber.

Triangular ceiling panels painted in the 17th century by Hans Heinrich Wägmann, showing Swiss and Lucerne history. About thirty hang in original positions; the rest are reinstalled copies after the 1993 fire.

On the night of 18 August 1993. About two-thirds of the wooden span burned and 78 of 158 ceiling paintings were lost. The rebuild was complete by April 1994.

— about the piece in your home

It is the city's signature view. For anyone who has walked the old town or studied at the university, a Medium reads instantly. A handwritten note from the studio travels with it.

Warm stained-glass colour against dark timber and stone. It sits well with European-traditional, alpine-modern, and warm-maximalist rooms, and reads as a single rich accent in a pale Scandinavian setting.

The current alpine-modern direction (warm woods, jewel-tone glass, slow craft) reads this piece as part of the family. The Medium and Large both work well with mid-tone oak and bronze fittings.

A Large covers a standard sofa wall, and the bridge's horizontal composition holds the eye left to right. A four-tile Mural opens the river further; a nine-tile Mural carries a full room.

Yes. Order Dura Satin or Matte for installations near water; both are scratch-resistant and steam-tolerant. The Glossy finish is for framed wall pieces in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure and will not lift with normal cleaning.

— if this one stayed with you

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