#mosaics

[thejawsdevour]

Hollie Graze (American) - Hangin Out (mosaic)

[blueiscoool]

Monumental Roman Villa With Mosaics and Marble Statue Unearthed After Illegal Excavation

An investigation into illegal excavation activity on the outskirts of Rome has led archaeologists to the discovery of a Roman imperial-period villa featuring elaborate mosaic floors, painted walls and a marble statue that may depict the rural deity Silvanus.

The villa was uncovered at Castel di Guido, a large agricultural estate west of Rome in the territory of ancient Lorium, an imperial property along the Via Aurelia. The discovery emerged during investigations by the Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma after reports of unauthorised digging on land owned by the Lazio Region.

Authorities were alerted to the illegal excavation on 16 February, prompting a joint operation involving heritage officials and the Carabinieri Cultural Heritage Protection Unit. By 23 February, the site had been secured and placed under surveillance.

Archaeologists found that mechanical digging had already damaged ancient structures, cutting deep trenches through the site. Rather than treating the incident solely as a criminal case, officials launched a controlled excavation to document and preserve the exposed remains.

The investigation revealed part of a substantial villa organised around a monumental atrium with a central impluvium, a basin used to collect rainwater. Surrounding floors were decorated with mosaics featuring geometric and vegetal motifs, coloured marble inlays and ornate threshold designs that indicate a residence of considerable wealth.

Fragments of painted plaster suggest the walls were once decorated with colourful panels depicting human figures and plant motifs. Four rooms have been identified around the atrium, three of which preserve sections of their original mosaic floors.

Researchers also found a cocciopesto-lined basin and evidence of working spaces, suggesting the villa combined elite domestic living with agricultural production, a common feature of Roman rural estates.

One of the most interesting finds is a fragmentary white marble statue that was found in the impluvium. At about 80 cm high, it is a bearded man carrying a basket decorated with birds and fruit.

Archaeologists think the figure may be Silvanus, the Roman god associated with forests, fields and agricultural prosperity, although other meanings can be possible. The rural symbolism of the statue is consistent with the villa’s agricultural setting.

The discovery is particularly important because Castel di Guido lies within the territory of ancient Lorium, an area closely linked to Rome’s imperial family. Historical sources associate the district with Antoninus Pius, who later established a residence there and died in AD 161. Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius are also connected with the region.

The new villa is among several high-class residential buildings known from the area and could have been owned by aristocratic families who were closely linked to the imperial court. There is an appearance of great wealth and influence in its mosaics and painted decoration and sculpture.

A little evidence suggests that the villa was built in the first half of the 1st century AD and gradually abandoned in the 3rd century AD. Pottery, architectural remains and decorative items will further clarify its chronology and tell us more about its history.

The Soprintendenza Speciale di Roma will present the discovery to the public on June 20 through two free guided archaeological walks at Castel di Guido, where visitors can see the villa’s remains and mosaics currently undergoing conservation.

The illegal excavation of a piece of Rome’s imperial heritage finally led to the recovery of a significant piece of Rome’s imperial heritage in the rural estates that surrounded the ancient capital.

By Mark Milligan.

[loustica-lucia]

Evanuris Week

A final post to celebrate the @evanurisweek with a mural of every mosaics I've done this week!

Individual Evanuris: ✦ Elgar'nan — God of Vengeance☀️ ✦ Mythal — The Great Protector🛡️ ✦ Falon'Din — Friend of the Dead💀 ✦ Dirthamen — Keeper of Secrets🤫 ✦ Andruil — Goddess of the Hunt🏹 ✦ Sylaise — The Hearthkeeper🔥 ✦ June — God of the Craft🛠️ ✦ Ghilan'nain — Mother of Halla🦌 ✦ Fen'Harel — The Dread Wolf🐺

Timelapse, references, brush used & WIPs:⤵

Clip Studio Paint Mosaic Brush (Free)

That's the brush I used (I didn't make it!)! I made different versions with premade colours I picked so I didn't have to change it manually everytime.

It uses the two colours in your palette by default! Just take the brush in your materials and edit the colour there if you'd like to do like me <3 It saves time if you work with a limited palette like I did!

[twintailedsiren]

Scylla in mosaics

While Scylla with two tails aren’t as common in ancient mosaics as other works I’ve art, I’ve found a few that I’m going to admire today. They’re all from Roman art, and countries further east than most Scyllas, in Tunisia and Algeria.

In the first mosaic, she has two dogs, an acanthus leaf skirt, two or three tails, and is raising an oar over her head, a typical gesture for her:

Scylla mosaic. Baths of Neptune, Room C. Ostia Antica, Italy. Roman, about 400 CE. Room info from Fulcrum.org. Via Ostia-Antica.org. For the full post, with some two-tailed Tritons, see here.

Two tailed Scylla, mosaic, Henchir Thina, 3rd century, Tunisia. Photo from: Moraw, Susanne. “From Survival of Peril to an Ideology of Total Annihilation: Scylla and the Sirens, from Homer to Herrad of Hohenburg.” The Art of Reception (Ed. by Jacobus Bracker - Ann-Kathrin Hubrich). Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2020, pp. 51–87. This Scylla also raises an oar over her head.

Scylla mosaic. Acholla: Maison de Neptune, Tunisia. Info from LIMC. (Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae) I'm not totally sure about the number of tails, but she's still a nice example of her: a dog visible, and she holds her usual oar.

Scylla mosaic, found in Merikeb-Thala. Museum of Antiquities in Algiers. Information from LIMC; drawing from National Library of France.

Here, Scylla is surrounded what are likely nereids or naiads, water nymphs astride hippocampi with scarves drifting over their heads. While the LIMC has a photo, I prefer this drawing, as it shows Scylla clearly. She hoists her oar, and her dogs are in an unusual placement: not as her waist, but between her tails. And special thanks for @cachalotpunk for helping me figure out the LIMC's database!

Related: two-tailed Tritons in Algeria.

Roman grotesques with two tails, Tunisia.

[twintailedsiren]

Today we’re going to take a look at some Roman mosaics that depict Scylla and Triton with two tails. All the mosaics come from Ostia Antica, Italy. Roman, and were made about 400 CE. These mosaics were well preserved, and have an ocean of different mythical marine creatures, from nereids to hippocampi to Poseidon with his trident:

Baths of Neptune, Via Ostia-Antica.org.

Now let’s admire this depiction of Scylla, the attacking monster from Homer’s Odyssey. Here, she has two dogs, an acanthus leaf skirt, two or three tails, and is raising an oar over her head, a typical gesture for her:

Scylla mosaic. Baths of Neptune, Room C. Ostia Antica, Italy. Roman, about 400 CE. Room info from Fulcrum.org.

In addition to Scylla, there’s also several images of Triton, holding a trident and blowing on his traditional conch-shell horn:

There's also these four Tritons, from the Baths at Ostia:

Info from LIMC, website on the baths, and the academic article “Oceanus, Tethys and Thalssa Figures in the Light of Antioch and Zeugma Mosaics.” I wrote about them in more depth here.

Finally, I want to include a similar mosaic, from a different location:

Black pebble mosaic. Roman Villa Supino, Italy. first half of the 2nd century AD. TVilla Romana in Cona del Popolo near Supino. From Flickr.

For anyone doing more research on these mosaics, they're listed in Scylla and Triton in the LIMC.

[portlanddeluxe]

SE Milwaukie & Haig

[sparkstudy1]

TEST BANK For CommunicATIon Mosaics An Introduction To The Field Of CommunicATIon 8th Edition By Julia T Wood Updated For 2025 2026

Achieve top grades and secure your academic success with this comprehensive Test Bank for 'Communication Mosaics: An Introduction to the Fie

[septembergold]