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Roman Mosaics from Lusitania (Portugal)
by Faces of Ancient Europe
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Roman mosaics from Lusitania, Portugal (Villa Torre de
Palma, Roman Ruins of Milreu, Est i, Mosaic floor
Conimbriga, Lusitania, Roman Villa of Pis es, Mertola,
Roman villa of Raba al near Conimbriga)
Among the most impressive Roman remains that can be seen
today in Portugal are the large, prosperous farms and
luxurious villas built in the countryside by the elite.
The villas were splendidly decorated with mosaics,
frescoes, and sculptures. Some of the mosaics, still in
situ or exhibited in the Archaeological Museum of Lisbon,
are often very well preserved. They are also a valuable
source of information on the rural lifestyle in this area
of the Roman Empire. Their study can tell us much about
the lifestyles of their occupants, from their love of
hunting or their passion for the circus races to their
devotion to scenes from mythology.
Torre de Palma, located in the Alentejo region, a South-
Central region of Portugal, is one of the largest Roman
villas in Portuguese territory. It was occupied from the
2nd through the 5th century AD and was located next to
the road that connected Olisipo (Lisbon) and Scallabis
(Santar m) to Augusta Emerita (M rida, Spain). A year
after the discovery of Torre de Palma in 1947, all the
mosaic pavements were removed and transferred to the
Museu Nacional de Arqueologia in Lisbon. The figurative
and geometric mosaics of this villa are of great
importance to the study of mosaic art in Hispania, both
from an iconographic and technical perspective.
In Milreu, located in the Algarve region, the
southernmost region of mainland Portugal, the remains of
a luxurious Roman villa contains some of the finest
mosaics from the Roman imperial era to be found in the
region. In the surrounding rooms of the villa and on the
exterior of the temple devoted to the cult of water,
polychrome mosaics with geometric motifs and underwater
scenes can be admired in situ. The profusion of mosaics
in the Algarve with fish motifs and marine backgrounds
gives some indication of the importance of the industrial
production of garum (Roman fish sauce) in this part of
Lusitania. The fishes depicted in these mosaics are sea
bass, dories, groupers, squids and dolphins together with
mussels and urchins.
In Con mbriga, one of the best preserved archaeological
site in Portugal, mosaic floors and foundations of many
houses and public buildings remain. The city, located
along the road connecting Bracara Augusta (Braga) and
Olisipo (Lisbon) included its own bathing complex, a
sophisticated heating system, ornamental pools, and
colonnaded gardens. The mosaics on the entire site are in
almost perfect condition, with incredibly detailed and
colorful designs. Some, located in the so-called House of
the Fountain, depict famous scenes from mythology (the
Minotaur in the Labyrinth, Actaeon being eaten by his
hounds, Perseus showing the head of Medusa to the sea-
monster, Bellerophon battling the Chimera) but the area
was not accessible to the public at the time of my visit
(check this site here to see the mosaics).
Situated near the city of Beja (Pax Julia), are the Roman
ruins of Pis es. The excavations unveiled a large Roman
villa with over forty rooms arranged around a small
peristyle with rich decorative elements found on the
floors and on its walls. Partial excavations have been
made in the residential sections of the villa (pars
urbana). Various rooms and the atrium used to contain
very fine monochrome and polychrome mosaic floors but the
excavations and now the abandonment of the site have left
the mosaics exposed to the elements, resulting in their
deterioration.
The village of Mertola, in the Lower Alentejo region next
to the Spanish border, is picturesquely set on the slopes
above the left bank of the Guadiana. Recent excavations,
in the area of what was the forum of the roman city
(Myrtilis)
Finally the mosaics found in the Roman villa of Raba al
near Conimbriga are well worth a mention. The excavations
undertaken in the pars urbana since in 1984, date of the
villa s discovery, have brought to light about 250 square
meters of mosaic flooring of exceptional interest dating
from the middle of the 4th century AD. Two decades after
the first excavations, the mosaics are still preserved in
situ protected by a thin layer of sand awaiting a shelter
structure. For this reason, the mosaics are currently
hidden from public view. The figurative motifs of the
mosaics found in the western corridor of the octagonal
peristyle depict the four seasons, a quadriga (four-horse
chariot), a seated female figure and some of the
geometrical and vegetal compositions.
Under The Rain by DotSlash Under The Rain by DotSlash
(https://soundcloud.com/dotslashmusic) is licensed under
a Creative Commons License
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).
Date Published: 2023-11-13 04:42:03
Identifier: youtube-6vhbfS63w1o
Item Size: 102090647
Media Type: movies
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