The Excavation of Antioch-on-the-Orontes 1932-1939

c323-M165

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House of the Mysteries of Isis
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House 2

H. 2.17 W. 2.94 Mosaic pavement of Room 1. Naval Battle. acc. to Doro Levi 'Navigium Isidis'. Outer border edged in red; the lower edge, red limestone, the upper edge, red glass; field yellow, containing a design of birds and flowers in an intricate variety of subtle modelling and colors, too elaborate to be given in full detail. The tesserae are small, the colors finely graded, and much glass is used with brilliant effect. Except for the glass tesserae, the colors are soft: violets, dark red, grey-brown, greys, pinks, dull greens, with occasional touches of black to outline legs, wings, crests, or feathers. Glass used for "eyes" in peacock's tail is light green, lemon-yellow, dark and light blue, and light grey. on other birds, red glass is sometimes used for feet or to outline wing feathers or beaks; bright orange glass appears in beaks and wings; dark and light blue glass is extensively used in plumage of the peahen (lower left) and in the bird (lower right) that is poorly preserved. Lemon-yellow glass is used sparingly. Basically, leaves and stems of flowers are of light grey and dark green-grey limestone, but they have many variations. Flower at lower left has a violet stem and two of its leaves edged in light green glass; other flowers have occasional leaves of light and dark blue glass as well as of light green. Flowers, dark and light blue, dark and light green, light grey, orange, and red glass, and dark ochre, grey, violet, white, black, yellow, and red limestone Foliate border, black, with a pattern of laurel leaf fleurons; leaves, blue glass edged inside with white limestone, enclosing an elongated oval bud of light green and bluish white glass; the underside outlined in white limestone which seems a part of the ribbon running through the pattern as it connects with the twist of ribbon in red limestone and orange glass at base of each flower; long stamens, grey, tipped with red. Lower left corner, small medallion of ochre, yellow, and white limestone, red and yellow-green glass; ends of ribbon white, red, and light pink limestone. Hunting border: upper left, humped ox; shadows grade from dark grey to blue-violet and dark red, with ochre in the half light, light pink and white in the full light; muzzle and eyes, black. Cast shadow, dark green-grey. Lower left side: head of wolf (?) projecting below break; shadows, dark grey, violet, and red, with ochre in the half light and pale tan in the full light; eye, outline of ear, corner of mouth, black; tongue, red glass. Hunter in lower left corner: outlines dark and light red and pink; flesh, light pink with white highlights and light brown shadowsl eyes, black; eyebrow, mouth, shadow under nose, grey-violet; lower lids and lip, red; tan shadow on temples and cheeks; hair, dark grey, violet, and black, with yellow highlight in center; violet shadow under chin, and, on neck at right, ochre and red shadow; bracelets on arms show traces of red and greenish yellow glass; arrow shafts black, changing to grey above the hand; one tip dark blue, the other, light blue-grey glass; wing outlined in black; shadow on lower feathers, dark olive green; feathers along top and side, light blue-grey and dark blue glass, yellow and white limestone highlights; staff in raised hand, dark olive green; cloak, black and dark violet-grey shadows below arm, changing to ochre with yellow and white highlights; above arm, band of red running around neck and from neck to arm. Lion: in yellows and browns with an area of dull yellow glass on the rump, and white highlights; tail, legs, toes, and fringe of hair behind the right foreleg have blue-violet shadow; far side of mane streaked with grey; eyes, nose, and mouth indicated in black and red; shadow under paws, black with a larger shadow area of dark green-grey. Hunter, spearing: outlines, red, violet, and violet-grey; flesh modelled like that of the first hunter; chlamys where it falls over the shoulders, dark and light blue and light blue-grey glass, on shoulder at right outlined in black limestone; drapery of area immediately below neck, yellow, bright green and yellowish green glass, which passes beneath the drapery of the shoulder at left, and when it reappears is dark blue and green glass with a row of grey limestone on the upper side; hair, grey-brown shaded in dark violet and black. Spear shaft, grey-green; spearhead, dark blue and blue-grey glass. Deer, lower right: outlined black and grey-green; body, violet and pale tan shaded in grey-violet; area of disintegrated glass on belly, in neck, beneath line of back, and along rump and legs where a few white glass tesserae remain, antlers, ears, eyes, mouth outlined in black; blood spurting from wound, red; arrow, grey-green and yellow. Cast shadow, dark grey-green. Dog attacking animal, border at right; outlines, red, black, and grey; body, light red and white shaded in red, pink, and brown; ears, eye, lower line of jaw outlined in black; violet-grey and dark grey shadow on belly. Animal attacked, in greys with streak of brown on back; areas of disintegrated glass on neck, belly, and hindlegs, of which some blue-grey tesserae remain. Above, tail of an animal in black and grey-brown. Hunter, upper right: flesh modelled like that of other hunters; hair, grey and grey-brown shaded in violet and black, with yellow highlight above forehead; cloak, at neck, dark blue, yellow-green, and bright green glass with dark grey limestone shadow; where it falls below arm, zigzag folds outlined in yellow; dark grey shadow on the outside with black at the hem; lining, dark blue and bright green glass. Shield, dark grey edged with grey-brown and red. Sword, yellow. Stag, at top: in greys, violets, and black with light areas on the body dark and light brown, or light grey and yellow, and on the rump, light grey, yellow, light greenish brown. The background of the border is bright blue glass broken only by the shadow areas. Figure panel: dentil border edged in black; top of the dentils, grey-brown that sometimes changes to ochre, interdentils, white; front of dentils (from bottom up), greenish yellow glass, yellow then white limestone, interdentils, red. Ship at right, brown-grey with two yellow stripes on the inner side of the prow that is outlined in black just above the break; dark patches on side, dark olive green and black; nearer oar, dark olive green with yellow highlight and black shadow; other oar, dark olive green. Legs of figure standing in ship, dark and light red with streak of grey in center; row of dark blue glass tesserae above knee of leg at right would indicate hem of garment. Ship at left: prow, dark and medium green-brown with streaks of yellow and white; just behind the nearer oar is an area of brown-grey, broken by a patch of dark grey-green and grey-brown, and by the two side beams, the lower one outlined in brown-grey, dull green-brown, yellow, and white, the filling dark and medium green-brown; upper one, white outline along top and side, the filling brown-grey changing to green-brown. Rowing porthole, yellow on the front with opening in center, black; shadow at the side, brown-grey, and top, white. Projecting oar: shaft, yellow shaded in black; blade, olive-green, yellow, and white, shaded in black; oar blade in front of ship the same, projecting from an area of black, grey, and dull yellow tesserae. Shield, pale orange shading to yellow and white with band of black glass at right, and two bands of violet glass at left. Legs (?) of figure behind shield, pink and red. Rest of this area below break, black and grey. To left, legs of standing figure: leg at left side, violet-grey and dark red shading to pink; toes separated by red. Cast shadow, black. Foot at right, red shading to pink with black shadow under sole. This figure stands in an impressionistic landscape of olive greens and greys, violet-grey, brown-grey, green-grey and very light grey with a white highlight under the raised foot. Above, a victory in the sky: extended arm underlined in blue-grey and shaded from red to pink; tunic, white with very light grey and light violet-grey folds; marks of disintegrated glass in several folds of which a few grey-blue tesserae remain; folds flying out at back, blue-grey; shield edged in ochre, the center olive green with black shadow; at left, traces of wings (?) or cloak (?), brown-grey, black, and yellow. Background of sky, pale grey. Sea indicated by streaks of turquoise, pale blue, green, and blue-grey glass of which only traces remain.

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