mosaic makers and their craft

Longinus Flavius Libertus, the freedman sleuth of Rosemary Rowe’s  The Legatus Mystery (from the Libertus Mysteries Series), is a pavement maker, a designer and maker of mosaics.

Roman mosaics were usually made of small square tesserae of 10mm x 10mm (3/8" x 3/8") size.

Below are a number of links/images of extant Roman mosaics, most of them quite elaborate.  It seems doubtful that our Libertus did much more than geometric patterns –which could be very intricate though – but may have had other design templates.  Occasionally, the mosaicist would sign his work, for example, The artist at work. 

In my travels in 1999 through Germany, I went to Bad Kreuznach near Mainz, where two mosaic floors were discovered in the remains of a Roman villa, in 1893 and 1966, and are now preserved in a museum barn.  They are presumed to be from the 2nd century AD, the period in which the Libertus mysteries are set.  So they are quite appropriate for our upcoming chat on February 7.

The better known is the Gladiator Mosaic, the other the Oceanus Mosaic, a favored theme.  (Click on the images below. Oh dear, old software, I have to re-edit those!)

The latter mosaic was done by the above Victorinus.

Another one that I have visited frequently is the Dionysos Mosaic (mid-3rd century AD) at the Roman-Germanic Museum in Cologne. Sadly, it has been heavily damaged in a recent January storm.

Sturm beschädigt Mosaik aus der Römerzeit in Kölner Museum
Schmerzhafte Schäden
Experten wollen weltberühmtes Kölner Dionysos-Mosaik retten

My own photos

The floors were heated by a hypocaust.

Bill Thayer has a page on the Domus from Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, John Murray, London, 1875 .  (excellent!)

Various links

Nova: Lost Roman Treasure (including another Oceanus) from Zeugma, now under a new reservoir on the Euphrates River
Roman Mosaics in Tunisia
Also from Tunesia:
brooklyn museum: jewish mosaics
from an exhibit in Cologne

The history of mosaic art - Mosaics in the ancient world
Wikipedia: Mosaic, Tessellation
Make a Roman mosaic online from Roman mosaics at Roman Britain / Examples
The Association for the Study and Preservation of Roman Mosaics (ASPROM)

Images © Irene Hahn

Comments

[Irene Hahn]

Jeff and Daphne, thank you for your kind comments!

I visited Regensburg in 2002, Jeff.   Enjoy!

[daphne sayed]

Thank you so much for these links. These mosaics are spectacular. There is a lovely one in Canterbury.

[Jeff Hayes]

Nice pics Irene, they reminded me of an experience while living in Stuttgart. We traveled to Regensburg and discovered part of Legion III Italica's former fortifications INSIDE a parking tower - a wonderful accident! Cheers, Jeff