Lake Mendota & Monona, carved in layers of birch
Every depth a real step in the wood, not a print.
“Beautiful piece, expertly crafted. Packed well and arrived in perfect condition.”
Mark S., Hudson, OH. Verified buyer
Mendota and Monona with Madison's isthmus between them, carved in Baltic birch at 24.5 by 31 inches: two lakes, one capital city on the strip of land they almost pinch shut, every depth contour its own laser-cut layer.
Details
- Dimensions
- 24.5 × 31 in
- Material
- Baltic birch, hand-stained water
- Build
- Up to 12 laser-cut birch layers
- Detail
- Carved bathymetric relief, laser-etched labels
- Soundings
- NOAA nautical survey data
About this piece
Mendota may be the most studied lake in the world; the science of limnology took root here at the University of Wisconsin in the 1880s, and researchers have tracked the lake's ice cover since the 1850s, one of the longest such records anywhere. Across the isthmus, Monona carries Frank Lloyd Wright's Monona Terrace on its shore. Between them sits the Capitol dome, visible from both waters. On the chart, the two basins face each other in birch with the isthmus a narrow bridge of top layer between them, the geography that makes Madison Madison.
Contours are laser-cut sheet by sheet and stacked by hand, names engraved into the wood, acrylic glass over the relief, solid Baltic birch frame.
Terrace sunsets, crew practice at dawn, ice boats in January: four seasons of two lakes, one piece of wood.
The engraving spans the UW campus and Picnic Point on Mendota, the Yahara River threading the lakes together, and Olbrich Gardens on Monona's shore. Wisconsin's other charted waters include Geneva Lake to the southeast and Winnebago to the northeast.
- 24.5 × 31 in
- Solid Baltic birch frame
- Acrylic glass front, ready to hang
- Free next-business-day shipping on orders placed by 2 PM EST
- 14-day returns
Shipping and returns
Orders placed by 2 PM EST ship the next business day, free anywhere in the US, with tracking.
14-day returns if the size or frame is not right for the room.
Going on someone else’s wall? It ships packed and ready to wrap. Add a gift note in your cart.
Not a print
Run a finger across it. You can feel the water get deeper.
Up to 12 sheets of Baltic birch, each one laser-cut to a real depth contour from NOAA survey data, stained darker as the water gets deeper, then stacked by hand. Deep water falls away layer after layer; the shallows sit close to the surface, just like the real thing.
How the water becomes wood
Anyone who grew up on this water has a spot on this chart.
The dock, the crossing, the stretch of shoreline that meant summer. Most people find theirs in the first minute. Every shoreline, island and depth contour of Lake Mendota & Monona is cut, layered and etched from real survey data.
Built for the wall it ends up on.
A solid birch frame, an acrylic front that keeps dust off the layers without the glare of glass, and hanging hardware already on the back, so it goes up the day it arrives.
From the people who hung one
6 reviews, 4.8 average
Plus 3,400+ reviews across our other charts, 5.0 average.
Live from the water
Questions people ask before they buy
Straight answers to the things that stop an order.
When will it arrive?
Orders placed by 2 PM EST ship the next business day, free anywhere in the US. You get a tracking number as soon as it leaves.
Which size should I choose?
The larger size is the one most people hang in a living room, over a sofa, console or mantel; it reads clearly from across the room. The smaller size suits a hallway, office, bathroom or boat. Both carry the same detail.
How is it packed? Will it survive shipping?
Each piece ships framed, with the acrylic front already in place, in a box built for it. "Packed well and arrived in perfect condition" is the most common thing reviewers say about delivery.
What if it is not right?
14-day returns. If the frame color is wrong for the room or the size is not what you pictured, send it back.
Is this a print?
No. The water is up to 12 physical layers of birch, each laser-cut to a real depth contour and stacked by hand. The names and depths are burned into the wood. You can feel every step.
Do you have my lake?
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