![]() By the 2d century before Christ tessellated pavements achieved an extreme refinement in technique and pictorial conventions. Other tessellated pavements of the 3d century b.c. An example of this technique is a panel by Sophilos depicting Alexandria personified found at Thmuis in Egypt. Nonetheless, certain of these display a considerable degree of modeling in the round, notably the "Stag Hunt" by Gnosis excavated at Pella.ĭuring the Hellenistic period the development of the practice of cutting stones into small pieces of deliberate shape, called tesserae, allowed for an increase of sophistication in pictorial design akin to painting, with which the pebble mosaics had not been able to compete. It seems likely that the rounded shapes of pebbles and their limited polychromy as found in nature induced the Greeks to stress silhouette and outline in the design of their figured pebble mosaics. The earliest pebble mosaic is of the late 8th century it was discovered at Gordion in Asia Minor and consists of geometric designs distributed in a blue and red pattern on a white ground. Polychrome pebble pavements of decorative design were used during the archaic period. Some examples of rare quality have been excavated at Olynthus and Pella. These pebble mosaics were popular in the early Hellenistic period. ![]() ![]() In ancient Greece figural scenes composed of polychrome pebbles have been found on pavements dating from the late 5th and early 4th centuries b.c. Beyond the boundaries of European civilization the Aztecs and Mayans had developed an independent production of turquoise mosaics used on armor and luxury articles.Īncient Greece and Rome. However, a continuity of mosaic production on a large scale can be observed only since ancient Greece. Luxury objects and jewelry decorated with a mosaic inlay of costly materials were produced in ancient Mesopotamia, Crete, and Egypt. A temple fa çade in Warka (Biblical Erech), dating from the protoliterate period before 3000 b.c., was covered with geometric designs formed by colored cones of fired clay embedded in the walls. The earliest recorded use of mosaic is found in Sumer. The comprehensive use of the term to include both kinds of mosaic became established gradually in the post-antique period.Įarly History. 13.4.2) includes both tessellarii who laid mosaic pavements and musivarii, makers of wall and vault mosaics. The term seems to have been applied at first only to wall and vault decoration and not to pavements. 25.4: "pictura est de museo" Augustine, Civ. 6.8: "pictum de musio" Trebellius Pollio, Trig. In its present meaning it is of late antique origin (Spartian, Pesc. The term "mosaic" seems borrowed from the Greek μ ο σ α. It is noteworthy that the extensive and refined use of stone incrustation parallels that of mosaic during the late Roman and early Byzantine periods. Glazed tile is found in the funerary precinct of Pharao Zoser of the Third Dynasty in Old Kingdom Egypt. An inlay depicting animal fables decorates an early dynastic harp from Ur (Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia). The employment of these media began very early in history. The latter differ from mosaic in that their units are larger and of varying sizes and shapes. These qualities mosaic shares with related media, such as glazed tile, stone incrustation, and inlay. In its use as architectural revetment and pavement surfacing, mosaic combines decorative qualities with a high resistance to humidity and wear. ![]() Pictures or patterns formed by closely spaced polychrome or monochrome stones (tesserae) of near uniform size, natural or artificial, embedded in a binder, such as cement.
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