Mosaics of the Greek and Roman World

Mosaics reached their fullest development under the Romans who used them to decorate the floors of their houses and public buildings. This book gives a comprehensive and fully illustrated history of mosaics in the Greek and Roman world, and studies their development over a thousand years throughout the Roman Empire. Chapters are devoted to technique, to the role of mosaics in architecture, and to their social implications and the role of patrons. This book is the only complete study in depth of this rich material.

"The author has synthesized a vast literature of individual publications and regional corpora in order to provide an overview of the whole course of the development and regional variations of Graeco-Roman floor mosaics. [...] The book is an authoritative summary of a thousand years of Greco-Roman mosaics and exemplary in every way. It is highly recommended for all museum libraries supporting museum collections in ancient art, as well as academic libraries supporting research in and the teaching of Greek and Roman art and architectural history." Art Documentation"Dunbabin provides a comprehensive review of nearly all of the aspects of ancient mosaics that have occupied scholars over the last three decades." Odyssey

'This book is a masterpiece of visual, historical, technical and social analysis.' Peter Jones, The Sunday Telegraph

' ... this is an exceptionally thorough analysis that will surely establish itself as the starting point for the study of mosaics for scholar and general reader alike.' The Art Newspaper

'There has been a need for a reliable, up-to-date general book on ancient mosaics ... The lack of proper synthesis has prevented mosaics from receiving the attention they deserve and it is to be hoped that this excellent book will succeed in making a neglected art form more accessible to a wider audience, whether of academics, students, or general readers.' Journal of Roman Studies

' ... prints no less than 318 pictures of mosaics that make fascinating viewing and are worth the cost of the book.' Archaeological Diggings

Mosaics reached their fullest development under the Romans, who used them to decorate the floors of their houses and public buildings. This book gives a comprehensive and fully illustrated history of mosaics in the Greek and Roman world, and studies their development over a thousand years throughout the Roman Empire. Chapters are devoted to technique, to the role of mosaics in architecture, and to their social implications and the role of patrons. This book is the only complete study of this rich material.

This is the first major study of the art of mosaic in antiquity. Covering over a thousand years through an area from Britain to Syria and beautifully illustrated with over 350 photographs, it studies the technical aspects and social implications of mosaics as domestic and public decoration.

Katherine M. D. Dunbabin is Professor of Classics at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. She is author of The Mosaics of Roman North Africa and has published widely in journals.

Introduction; Part I. Historical and Regional Development: 1. Origins and pebble mosaics; 2. The invention of tessellated mosaics: Hellenistic mosaics in the east; 3. Hellenistic mosaics in Italy; 4. Mosaics in Italy: Republican and Imperial; 5. The north-western provinces; 6. Britain; 7. The North African provinces; 8. Sicily under the Empire: Piazza Armerina; 9. The Iberian peninsula; 10. Syria and the east; 11. Palestine and Transjordan; 12. Greece: the Imperial period; 13. Asia Minor, Cyprus, Constantinople; 14. Wall and vault mosaics; 15. Opus sectile; Part II. Technique and Production: 16. Craftsmen and workshops; 17. Techniques and procedures; 18. The repertory; 19. Architectural context and function; 20. The patrons; Conclusions; Maps; Glossary of ornamental patterns; General glossary.