Giacobbe Giusti

A Roman mosaic on a wall in the House of Neptune and Amphitrite, Herculaneum, Italy, 1st century AD

A Roman mosaic is a mosaic made during the Roman period, throughout the Roman Republicand later Empire. Mosaics were used in a variety of private and public buildings.^[1] They were highly influenced by earlier and contemporary Hellenistic Greek mosaics, and often included famous figures from history and mythology, such as Alexander the Great in the Alexander Mosaic. A large proportion of surviving examples come from Italian sites such as Pompeii and Herculaneum, as well as other areas of the Roman Empire.

Development

A Roman mosaic inscribed with the Latin phrase cave canem (« beware of the dog« ), from the House of the Tragic Poet in Pompeii, Italy, 2nd century BC

Mosaic with Xenia, 4th century AD, Pius Clementine museum, Vatican Museums

The earliest examples of Roman mosaicflooring date to the late Republican period (2nd century BC) and are housed in Delos, Greece. Witts claims that tessellated pavements, using tesserae, were used in Europe from the late fifth to early fourth centuries BC.^[2] This is contradicted by Ruth Westgate, who contends that the earliest tessellated mosaics of the Hellenistic period date to the 3rd century BC, with the 2nd to early 1st-century BC mosaics of Delos constituting roughly half of the known examples.^[3] Hetty Joyce and Katherine M. D. Dunbabin concur with this assessment, asserting that the transition from pebble mosaics to more complex tessellated mosaics originated in Hellenistic-Greek Sicilyduring the 3rd century BC, developed at sites such as Morgantina and Syracuse.^[4]^[5] The earliest known pebble mosaics and use of chip pavement are found at Olynthus in Greece’s Chalcidice, dated to the 5th to 4th centuries BC, while other examples can be found at Pella, capital of Macedon, dated to the 4th century BC.^[6]^[5]

The earliest mosaics of Roman Pompeii, dated to the Pompeian First Style of wall painting in the late 2nd and early 1st centuries BC, were clearly derived from the Hellenistic Greek model.^[7]However, the contained far more figured scenes on average, less abstract design, the absence of lead strips, as well as an almost complete lack of complex, three-dimensional scenes utilizing polychromy until the Pompeian Second Style of wall painting (80-20 BC).^[8]^[7] The mosaics in the Villa Romana del Casale (c. 300 AD) from Roman Sicily perhaps represent the hallmark of mosaic art in the Late Imperial period. The mosaic decoration of the local palace complex culminates in the gallery, which contains a scene of animal hunting and fighting covering an area of 3,200 square feet (300 m²).^[9]

The Alexander Mosaic from Pompeii, ca. 100 BC

Roman mosaics are constructed from geometrical blocks called tesserae,^[10] placed together to create the shapes of figures, motifs and patterns.^[2] Materials for tesserae were obtained from local sources of natural stone, with the additions of cut brick, tile and pottery creating coloured shades of, predominantly, blue, black, red, white and yellow.^[2] Polychrome patterns were most common, but monochrome examples are known.^[11] Marble and glass were occasionally used as tesserae,^[12] as were small pebbles,^[13]and precious metals like gold.^[14] Mosaic decoration was not just confined to floors but featured on walls and vaults as well. Traces of guidelines have been found beneath some mosaics, either scored into or painted onto the mortar bedding. The design might also be pegged out in string,^[2] or mounted in a wooden frame.^[15]

The collapse of buildings in antiquity can, paradoxically, both irrevocably destroy mosaics or protect and preserve them.^[2]

Imagery

Achilles being adored by princesses of Skyros, a scene from the Iliad where Odysseus (Ulysses) discovers him dressed as a woman and hiding among the princesses at the royal court of Skyros. A late Roman mosaic from La Olmeda, Spain, 4th-5th centuries AD

As well as geometric patterns and designs, Roman mosaics frequently depicted divine characters or mythological scenes.^[16]^[17]

Portraits

Imagery of famous individuals or entertaining scenes are common on Roman mosaics. The Alexander Mosaic from the House of the Faun, Pompeii depicts the Battle of Issus between Alexander the Great and Darius III.^[18] In addition to famous people from antiquity, mosaics can depict aspects of daily life. The Gladiator Mosaicfrom Rome depicts a fighting scene, naming each gladiator involved. A gladiatorial scene is also known from Leptis Magna.^[19]

Religion[edit]

One of the earliest depictions of Roman Christianity is a mosaic from Hinton St Mary (in Dorset, England) which shows Christ with a Chi-Rho behind his head. The mosaic is now in the British Museum.^[9] Orpheus mosaics, which often include many animals drawn by the god’s playing, are very common; he was also used in Early Christian art as a symbol for Christ. Scenes of Dionysus are another common subject.

Emblems

Progression within the mosaic technique developed the emblem, the « heart » of all mosaics. The word emblem is used to describe a small mosaic featuring a little genre scene or still life, characterised by particularly thin tesserae made separately and mounted in a central or important position in the main panel.

Notable examples

The Alexander Mosaic from the House of the Faun, Pompeii.
The Tomb of the Julii in the Vatican Necropolis, beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome.
The Gladiator Mosaic from the Via Casilinaoutside Rome.
The Zliten Mosaic from Zliten in Libya.

Gallery

Detail of Alexander Mosaic, depicting Alexander the Great, c. 100 BC, Pompeii
Neptune driving his chariot
Ulysses during his journey
Love scene, 1st century
Comedy Mask
Antioch Mosaic
Epiphany of Dionysus mosaic, from the Villa of Dionysus (2nd century AD) in Dion, Greece. Now in the Archeological Museum of Dion.
Judgment of Paris, marble, limestone and glass tesserae, 115–150 AD; from the Atrium House triclinium in Antioch-on-the-Orontes
The Zliten mosaic showing gladiators, 2nd century AD
A Roman mosaic depicting the wedding of Dionysos and Ariadne, with Silenus and a satyr, 2nd century AD, Tunis, Tunisia
A mosaic showing Medusa and representational figures of the four seasons, from Palencia, Spain, made between 167 and 200 AD
A Roman mosaic from Piraeusdepicting Medusa, using opus tessellatum, 2nd century AD, National Archaeological Museum of Athens
Mosaic of female athletes playing ball at the Villa Romana del Casale of Piazza Armerina, 4th century AD
Late Roman mosaics at Villa Romana La Olmeda, Spain, 4th-5th centuries AD
Triumph of Poseidon and Amphitriteshowing the couple in procession, detail of a mosaic from Cirta, Roman Africa, 315–325 AD, Louvre
Paleochristian mosaic from Santa Pudenziana in Rome, c. 410 AD
Mosaic of Orpheus from Caralis, modern Cagliari (Italy), now in Archeological Museum of Turin
Mosaic of Diana bathing. As-Suwayda, Syria

References

Jump up^ Bertoldi 2011.
^ Jump up to:^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Witts 2005.
Jump up^ Westgate (2000), pp. 255-256.
Jump up^ Joyce (1979), p. 260.
^ Jump up to:^a ^b Dunbabin (1979), p. 265.
Jump up^ Joyce (1979), pp. 259-260.
^ Jump up to:^a ^b Westgate (2000), pp. 255-275.
Jump up^ Joyce (1979), pp. 253-254, 257-258.
^ Jump up to:^a ^b « The Hinton St Mary Mosaic ». British Museum. 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
Jump up^ Dunbabin 2006, p. 280.
Jump up^ Packard 1980.
Jump up^ Ricciardi et al.
Jump up^ Donaldson 1965.
Jump up^ Neri & Verità 2013.
Jump up^ Oliver 2001.
Jump up^ « Physical Aspects of the Polytheistic Roman Style ». Tufts University. 2005. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
Jump up^ C., Rawan (11 March 2015). « Roman Mosaic Discoveries Made Through Time ». Mozaico. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
Jump up^ Knox, E.L. Skip. « Alexander the Great – The Battle of Issus (334) ». History of Western Civilization, Boise State University. Archived from the original on 25 March 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
Jump up^ « Roman mosaic found in Libya ». News24. 14 June 2005. Retrieved 21 February 2015.

Sources

Bertoldi, Susanna (2011). The Vatican Museums: discover the history, the works of art, the collections[I Musei Vaticani: conoscere la storia, le opere, le collezioni]. Sillabe. ISBN 978-8882712105.
Donaldson, M. Katherine (1965). « A Pebble Mosaic in Peiraeus » (PDF). Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. 34(2): 77–88. JSTOR 147018.
Dunbabin, Katherine, M. D. (1979), « Technique and Materials of Hellenistic Mosaics », American Journal of Archaeology, Archaeological Institute of America, 83 (3): 265–277, doi:10.2307/505057, JSTOR 507451.
Dunbabin, Katherine M. D. (1999). Mosaics of the Greek and Roman world. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521461436.
Joyce, Hetty (1979), « Form, Function and Technique in the Pavements of Delos and Pompeii », American Journal of Archaeology, Archaeological Institute of America, 83 (3): 253–263, doi:10.2307/505056, JSTOR 505056.
Neri, Elisabetta; Verità, Marco (2013). « Glass and metal analyses of gold leaf tesserae from 1st to 9th century mosaics. A contribution to technological and chronological knowledge ». Journal of Archaeological Science. 40 (12): 4596–4606. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2013.07.017.
Oliver, Andrew (2001). « A Glass Opus Sectile Panel from Corinth » (PDF). Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. 70(3): 349–363. JSTOR 3182066.
Packard, Pamela M. (1980). « A Monochrome Mosaic at Isthmia » (PDF). Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. 49 (4): 326–346. JSTOR 147913.
Ricciardi, Paola; Colomban, Philippe; Tournié, Aurélie; Macchiarola, Michele; Ayed, Naceur (2009). « A non-invasive study of Roman Age mosaic glass tesserae by means of Raman spectroscopy ». Journal of Archaeological Science. 36 (11): 2551–2559. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2009.07.008.
Westgate, Ruth (2000), « Pavimenta atque emblemata vermiculata: Regional Styles in Hellenistic Mosaic and the First Mosaics at Pompeii », American Journal of Archaeology, Archaeological Institute of America, 104 (2): 255–275, doi:10.2307/507451, JSTOR 507451.
Witts, Patricia (2005). Mosaics in Roman Britain: Stories in Stone. Stroud: History Press. ISBN 978-0752434216.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_mosaic

http://www.giacobbegiusti.com

[FOOTNOTEBertoldi2011-1] Jump up^ Bertoldi 2011.

[FOOTNOTEWitts2005-2] Jump up to:^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Witts 2005.

[FOOTNOTEWestgate2000255-256-3] Jump up^ Westgate (2000), pp. 255-256.

[FOOTNOTEJoyce1979260-4] Jump up^ Joyce (1979), p. 260.

[FOOTNOTEDunbabin1979265-5] Jump up to:^a ^b Dunbabin (1979), p. 265.

[FOOTNOTEJoyce1979259-260-6] Jump up^ Joyce (1979), pp. 259-260.

[FOOTNOTEWestgate2000255-275-7] Jump up to:^a ^b Westgate (2000), pp. 255-275.

[FOOTNOTEJoyce1979253-254,_257-258-8] Jump up^ Joyce (1979), pp. 253-254, 257-258.

[RM-9] Jump up to:^a ^b « The Hinton St Mary Mosaic ». British Museum. 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2015.

[FOOTNOTEDunbabin2006280-10] Jump up^ Dunbabin 2006, p. 280.

[FOOTNOTEPackard1980-11] Jump up^ Packard 1980.

[FOOTNOTERicciardiColombanTourniéMacchiarola-12] Jump up^ Ricciardi et al.

[FOOTNOTEDonaldson1965-13] Jump up^ Donaldson 1965.

[FOOTNOTENeriVerità2013-14] Jump up^ Neri & Verità 2013.

[FOOTNOTEOliver2001-15] Jump up^ Oliver 2001.

[16] Jump up^ « Physical Aspects of the Polytheistic Roman Style ». Tufts University. 2005. Retrieved 13 March 2015.

[17] Jump up^ C., Rawan (11 March 2015). « Roman Mosaic Discoveries Made Through Time ». Mozaico. Retrieved 13 March 2015.

[18] Jump up^ Knox, E.L. Skip. « Alexander the Great – The Battle of Issus (334) ». History of Western Civilization, Boise State University. Archived from the original on 25 March 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015.

[19] Jump up^ « Roman mosaic found in Libya ». News24. 14 June 2005. Retrieved 21 February 2015.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

Musei Vaticani Giacobbe Giusti, Vatican Museums
Sculptures above the exits of museums
Location of the Vatican Museums within Vatican City
Wikimedia \| © OpenStreetMap
Established	1506
Location	Vatican City
Coordinates	41°54′23″N 12°27′16″ECoordinates: 41°54′23″N 12°27′16″E
Type	Art museum
Visitors	6,427,277 (2017) ^[1]
Director	Barbara Jatta^[2]
Website	Official website

Giacobbe Giusti

the works of art

Tous les articles tagués the works of art

Giacobbe Giusti, Vatican Museums

Laocoön and His Sons

Athletenmosaike aus den Caracalla-Thermen

Stefaneschi Triptych

Annunciazione (Gentile da Fabriano)

History

Pinacoteca Vaticana

Collection of Modern Religious Art

Sculpture museums

Museo Pio-Clementino

Museo Chiaramonti

Museo Gregoriano Etrusco

Museo Gregoriano Egiziano

History

Vatican Historical Museum

Highlights from the Painting Collection

Other Highlights in the Museum

Visitors

References

Further reading

Giacobbe Giusti, Roman mosaic

Development

Imagery

Portraits

Religion[edit]

Emblems

Notable examples

Gallery

References

Sources

Articles récents

Méta

Giacobbe Giusti, Vatican Museums

Part of a series on the
The New Wing, built by Raffaele Stern.
Artists[show]
Architects[show]
Architecture[show]
Paintings[show]
Sculptures[show]
Frescoes[show]
Artifacts[show]
Collections[show]
Catholicism portal Vatican City portal
v t e