What does the Floor Mosaic tell us about the early global world?
Religiously Diverse
The mosaic's peacocks and grapes have connections both to paganism and Christianity. This shows that the early global world was religiously diverse. Later in the medieval period Christ will be depicted explicitly, such as in The Last Judgement painting.Natural Resources & Connections
Limestone and other valuable materials were extracted within the Byzantine empire and traded to other places. The early global world utilized natural resources and was connected in a way that allowed other areas to benefit from local resources.
Diverse & Shifting
Roman traditions of mosaics carried over into the Byzantine Empire. The floor mosaic tells us that the empires and styles of the early global world were diverse and shifting. Comparing WAM's mosaic to another mosaic showing the Byzantine emperor Justinian I's court, also completed in the 500s, we see that mosaics can also decorate walls, and different materials -- like gold -- could be used for different effects.
Motifs
The mosaic shows that the early global world shared motifs. For example, the late Roman sarcophagus of Constantina, sculpted in the middle 300s CE, shares the mosaic's scrolling vines and strutting peacocks (look at the bottom corners).
Crafts & Arts
The early global world supported craftsmen and artists with both public and private commissions.
Maggie McCracken, Class of 2025, College of the Holy Cross
