Ancient Roman Interlaced Geometric Pattern Floor Mosaic 4th - 5th Century Ad

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A substantial and architecturally evocative Roman mosaic pavement fragment, dating to the 4th - 5th century CE (or AD) possibly … Read more A substantial and architecturally evocative Roman mosaic pavement fragment, dating to the 4th - 5th century CE (or AD) possibly as early as the 2nd century CE, likely originating from the Eastern Mediterranean provinces of the Roman Empire—such as Syria, Asia Minor, or the Levant. Measuring approximately 49 inches wide by 35 inches high, the mosaic has been carefully preserved and stabilized in a modern concrete support matrix, likely for the purposes of conservation following excavation.

Executed in opus tessellatum with hand-cut tesserae of natural colored stone—predominantly warm ochre, reddish sandstone, pale limestone, and deep basalt—the composition displays a sophisticated arrangement of interlaced borders enclosing rectilinear panels. The four corners and the central panels are unified by a continuous and symmetrical ribbon motif, outlined in dark stone and filled with light and reddish tones to create a vivid three-dimensional twisting effect. The field is composed of pinkish tesserae set in diagonal lozenged patterns, creating a dense herringbone-like texture that once served as the ground plane of a Roman domestic or civic interior, possibly a triclinium, peristyle, or small bath complex.

The mosaic is mounted in a later, mid-20th-century iron frame, and the reverse reveals its preservation context: the tesserae are embedded in mortar and set within a thick cementitious bed, with circular drafting lines still visible—likely remnants of the original floor layout or an aid used in the conservation process. The work survives with areas of minor loss and expected surface abrasion but retains strong visual integrity and a well-preserved palette.

The use of interlaced geometric ornament and restrained, non-figural decoration is characteristic of late Roman pavements from Antioch to Gerasa, aligning this example with a broad provincial tradition of geometric mosaic design. Closely comparable fragments appear in the collections of the Yale University Art Gallery (from Dura-Europos), the Israel Museum, and the Louvre’s Department of Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities. As a fragment of architectural decoration, this mosaic offers both a powerful visual record and a physical relic of the classical world's domestic artistry and decorative geometry. See less