Late Roman Mosaic - Bacchic Ceremonial Dancers

Late Roman or Early Byzantine, the Levant, late Imperial Period, ca. 4th to 6th century CE. A very fine Roman mosaic comprised of thousands of stone tesserae, the rectangular composition depicting three dancers - two male figures flanking a central female. The males are both presented in composite profile, their bodies oriented toward the female, and each holds a lovely strand of green beads - the man on the left also holds a deer. The female assumes a dramatic pose with her arms extended out toward the beaded strands held by her male partners, her torso turned in 3/4 view, her left leg bent at the knee, and her right leg extended out. The figures are meticulously modeled with tiny colorful tesserae of gradated beige, salmon, grey, black, and white hues. The man on the left is nude save a grey cape over his shoulder and grey foot coverings with ties around the legs. The man on the right wears a blousy shirt and anklets on otherwise nude legs. The female wears voluminous garments, green double bracelets, and a twisted coiffure. Size: 68" W x 24.75" H (172.7 cm x 62.9 cm); 70.75" W x 27.25" H (179.7 cm x 69.2 cm) w/ matrix

Perhaps these are Bacchic ceremonial dancers. Perhaps they are theatrical performers. The Romans are known for developing entertainment ampitheatres built of stone and establishing a vibrant theatre tradition - the most famous ampitheatre of them all being the Colosseum. On the Colosseum's upper galleries are mosaics of dancers and actors. Music and dance were beloved forms of entertainment in Roman theatre. Although no written ancient music has survived in legible form, we can still use our imaginations to hear the sounds created by harpists, flautists, and tambourine players.

Mosaics (opus tesellatum) are some of our enduring images from the Roman world, appreciated not only for their aesthetic beauty, but also because they reveal what Romans chose to depict and see every day decorating their private and public spaces. In the Roman province of Syria, which encompassed most of the ancient Near East/Levant, mosaics seem to have developed as a common art form relatively late, with most finds coming from the 3rd century CE or later. Syria was one of Rome's wealthiest provinces, but it was also far removed from Rome itself and Roman culture was overlaid on enduring cultural traditions from Hellenistic Greece and the great civilizations that came before it. Antioch-on-the-Orontes (modern day Antakya, Turkey), was the capital of northern Roman Syria, and its excavations in the 1930s revealed more than three hundred mosaic pavements.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection; ex-private Swiss collection, acquired in the 1990s from M. Farid Ziadeh

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#146421
Condition Report: Old chips and fissures to some tesserae with some losses as shown, but the imagery is still quite vivid. Tesserae are ancient. Set in a modern matrix with metal framing. Suspension holes on the verso.