Alluvial Wall, Public sculpture at Eastbank Esplanade, Portland, US

Alluvial Wall is a steel and bronze sculpture along the Eastbank Esplanade in Portland that stretches about 13 feet (4 meters) beside the river. It features layered copper strips with cast black metal objects embedded throughout, creating the appearance of collected items from a shoreline.

Alluvial Wall was made in 2001 by artist Peter Nylen with the architectural firm Rigga, and paid for through the City of Portland Development Commission's Percent for Art program. It is one of four Rigga works along the Eastbank Esplanade, together with Echo Gate and Stack Stalk by Ean Eldred and Ghost Ship by James Harrison. The piece belongs to the City of Portland and Multnomah County Public Art Collection, administered by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

The sculpture represents the geological layers of the Willamette River before Portland's urban development through copper strips and metal artifacts.

The sculpture is easily accessible from the Eastbank Esplanade pathway, a popular walking and cycling route along the river. You can view it at any time by strolling or riding along the waterfront promenade.

The black cast-metal objects set into the copper strips include a child's ball, a morel mushroom and a railroad spike. Look closely at the layered bands to find them; one writer compared the whole piece to what the tide leaves on a beach.