Wender·Vista
Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileWyoming
above the rotunda of the Wyoming State Capitol in Cheyenne

Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome

— — gold leaf, regilded, holding the prairie sun.

— 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

“About 146 feet above the rotunda floor in Cheyenne, the dome of the Wyoming State Capitol carries fresh 24-karat gold leaf, applied during the four-year restoration that finished in 2019. The leaf is hammered into sheets thinner than tissue and laid by hand. From the south end of Capitol Avenue the dome reads as a single point of warm light against the high plains sky. — from the studio

from the studio
Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome
— bring it home

Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome, 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 Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome

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

The gilded dome crowns the Wyoming State Capitol at the head of Capitol Avenue in Cheyenne. The building was completed in 1890, the year Wyoming joined the Union, with the architect David W. Gibbs of Toledo designing both the sandstone shell and the central rotunda. The dome rises roughly 146 feet above the ground floor and is visible from a long way out on the high plains. The Capitol was named a National Historic Landmark in 1987.

— the light

Cheyenne sits at 6,062 feet on the open plains, and the air over the city is thin and dry. The dome reads gold from a long distance because there is nothing higher beside it to compete for the eye. The 24-karat leaf was regilded most recently during the 2015 to 2019 Capitol Square Project. Late afternoon, when the western light comes in low across the prairie, the dome shifts from yellow to deep amber.

— the stone

The dome rests on a drum carried by load-bearing sandstone walls. The stone was quarried near Rawlins, Wyoming, about 150 miles west of Cheyenne, and is a warm, corn-yellow sandstone that pairs with the gold leaf rather than competing with it. Inside the rotunda, the original 1890s stained-glass skylight and decorative stenciling were conserved as part of the same restoration that returned the dome to fresh leaf.

— where
United States · Cheyenne, Laramie County, Wyoming
— position
41.1399° N · 104.8202° W
— 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.
0.8 km S
Cheyenne Depot
historic railroad depot
0.3 km E
Wyoming State Museum
museum
0.8 km E
Historic Governors' Mansion
house museum
N
Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome
Cheyenne Depot
Wyoming State Museum
Historic Governors' Mansion
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Wyoming State Capitol gilded dome — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

The dome rises roughly 146 feet above the ground floor of the Capitol rotunda. From the south end of Capitol Avenue it is the highest point in the immediate downtown skyline.

Yes. The dome is sheathed in 24-karat gold leaf, hammered into sheets thinner than tissue and laid by hand. It has been regilded several times since 1890 to replace leaf lost to the prairie weather.

During the Capitol Square Project, a four-year restoration of the building and grounds that ran from 2015 to 2019. The dome was returned to bare metal and re-leafed before reopening.

Pure 24-karat gold does not tarnish or oxidise, so the leaf keeps its colour for decades. What it loses is mechanical — wind, hail, and the high-plains weather slowly wear the leaf thin.

David W. Gibbs of Toledo, Ohio. The cornerstone was laid in 1887 and the building was completed in 1890, the year Wyoming was admitted as the 44th state of the Union.

Yes. Self-guided tours of the rotunda are open on weekdays at no charge, and the interior of the dome — the original 1890s stained-glass skylight and stenciling — is visible from the rotunda floor.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for that recipient. The gilded dome is the civic emblem of the state. A Small or Medium with a handwritten note from the studio reads as recognition rather than memorabilia.

Paneled libraries, traditional offices, and rooms with warm neutrals. The gold-against-prairie palette also sits well inside Western-modern interiors that already use leather, brass, and walnut.

Yes. The current direction in interiors favors a single named landmark over generic skylines. A piece tied to a real statehouse dome reads as informed rather than decorative.

Above a standard sofa, a single Large or a four-tile Mural holds the wall. Above a console, the Medium is usually right. For an office wall or stair landing, a nine-tile Mural carries.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and rated for vertical installation in showers and backsplashes. The colour will not lift with household cleaning.

A soft microfibre cloth and water. The colour is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, beneath a thin glossy finish, so household cleaning does not affect it.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to the studio and is not licensed from any third party. Reid Wender is the curator and chooses every place that enters the atlas.

— if this one stayed with you

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