Roman mosaic is an art form that emerged in Ancient Rome, blending Greek and Byzantine cultures. Initially, these were drawings on walls, walkways, floors, and ceilings made using pebbles. Later, mosaic images were assembled from glass. Over time, the processing of stones and glass improved, and images became clearer and more distinct. Thus, in the ancient Roman state, palaces and homes of wealthy individuals were decorated, portraits were made, and scenes of hunting, war, and other stories were depicted.

History

The art of mosaic on building walls from stones was borrowed by the Romans from the Greeks, who practiced this method of decoration from the second century BC. The peak of this art form occurred during the successful military campaigns of Julius Caesar and Octavian Augustus when the empire became wealthier through the collection of tributes. Masters from Greece were invited to the ancient Roman state to work and train apprentices. In this way, the state on the Apennine Peninsula inherited the culture of mosaic from Hellas.

Initially, the drawings were very primitive and consisted of geometric shapes and lines. The craft of mosaic gradually improved, and masters learned to depict people and animals in wall paintings using stones. The technique of paving became more complex, drawings became more elaborate, and materials changed and improved: hunting, theatrical, and military scenes were depicted.

Works executed in more complex techniques, such as opus sectile, were available to wealthy people, in whose homes walls, floors, and ceilings were decorated in this way.

Mosaic drawings were used not only to decorate homes but also for warnings — inscriptions, for example, that a dog lived in the house and guarded it. The words "Cave canem," meaning "Beware of the dog," were accompanied by a picture on the path to the house.

A mosaic painting depicting Alexander the Great and King Darius III, "The Battle of Issus," is well known. It has been preserved in Pompeii in the House of the Faun.

Techniques and Images

Initially, Roman mosaic was composed of whole pebbles. This technique was called "barbaric." Improved stone processing allowed for the use of cut and even fragments of stones, making the images clearer.

There are four known techniques for executing wall and floor drawings of ancient Roman mosaic from processed stones:

Opus tessellatum. The fragment size is more than 4 mm. It is a large mosaic.
Opus vermiculatum. The size of the elements of the painting is less than 4 mm. Roman mosaic became more detailed and clearer.
Opus sectile or Florentine. In this technique, fragments of different sizes are used: both whole and processed stones. Typically, an unprocessed element was placed in the center, framed by small stones or glass.
Opus regulatum. Equal elements were laid out in a pattern of the correct geometric shape similar to a chessboard.

Compared to whole stone paving, the opus tessellatum technique left narrower seams between its elements. Gaps between stones were painted in a tone matching the fragments. Color glass — smalt, made from silicon dioxide and cobalt — was also used. With the rise of the Roman Empire, the opus tessellatum technique was partially replaced by the more complex and expensive opus vermiculatum technique in the 1st century BC, especially in Italy.

In the opus vermiculatum technique, seams between the chipped stones (tesserae) were also painted. The images became clearer due to the reduction in size of the constituent elements. This technique was used for the Sicilian "Hunting Scene," "Doves on a Bowl," "Inhabitants of the Ocean Depths," "Rider on a Tiger," and "Woman's Breakfast" in Pompeii.

Roman mosaic in the opus sectile style is a newer technique that arose from the desire to save material by creating plates from stone. The necessary image was laid out with "tiles." This method required significant material investment due to its technical complexity of stone processing. Roman mosaics in the opus sectile style decorated the homes of very wealthy individuals.

The opus regulatum technique created geometrically correct drawings and was used for paving roads.

In addition to pebbles, semiprecious stones, marble, limestone, rubble, and glass (smalt) were also used. The latter, due to its low cost and visual appeal, became the most common material for creating images. Glass was used in the creation of ceiling, wall, and floor mosaic paintings. These works adorned the temples of gods and patricians' palaces.

Smalt was made from cobalt and silicon dioxide, with different shades being created. This colorful glass seemed to glow from within. Producing smalt was inexpensive, and its appearance could mimic precious and semiprecious stones.