ORPHEUS MOSAIC, CAGLIARI
last modified 2008-11-11 17:16
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Mosaic
Period: middle of 3rd century A.D. circa
Orpheus occupies the large, middle section of this polychrome floor mosaic, found in the Roman town of Caralis (Cagliari).
In 1762, the floor was cut up for easier transportation, and brought to Torino, the former capital of the Kingdom of Sardinia.
The character is depicted bare-chested and wearing the typical Phrygian pointed hat. He plays a lyre while sitting on a rock surrounded by trees. Orpheus' extraordinary singing ability of taming savage beasts solely with his art was truly a loved myth in the ancient times.
A yearling and part of a horse are the sole remains of all the beasts depicted along the border of the mosaic as handed down by the painter, Domenico Colombino, who drew a copy of the mosaic in 1803.
http://museoarcheologico.piemonte.be...saic-cagliari/
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