Lot 45
Roman, the Levant, late Imperial Period, ca. 3rd to 5th century CE. A dramatic mosaic from the floor of a Byzantine church in Antioch (Turkey) that was destroyed in an earthquake in antiquity, depicting a large leopard seizing an antelope and sinking its teeth and claws into the antelope's back. The artist shows the antelope caught, eyes wide, legs akimbo, head back. The leopard is similarly dynamic, with its back paws on the ground, its tail curved around its lower body, and its teeth well rendered. The artist has also used dark red tesserae to indicate the drawing of blood from the prey's back. Leaves sprout behind the leopard, while the rest of the scene is without detail, on a creamy white background and set within a dark, roughly square border. Around that border are several rows of darker tiles, so that the scene of the animals stands out within what was probably a larger work, perhaps a floor or a wall. The mosaic is on a concrete backing. Size: 25" W x 23.5" H (63.5 cm x 59.7 cm)
Scenes of hunting and wild animals were more likely to be in a public space than a private one, where more tranquil subjects seem to have been preferred, and the scene of a lion attacking an antelope was a common one, associated with Christian belief. Animals of all kinds were popular subjects for mosaics. Romans delighted in seeing animals, and a major Roman industry during the imperial period was the capture and transport of birds, mammals, and lizards for display and sport in the Roman arena. Their mosaic artwork reflects that, and this scene might represent a sport seen in a local amphitheatre. Mosaics (opus tesellatum) are some of our enduring images from the Roman world, 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 Carlton Collection, Los Angeles, California, USA
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#122060
- Condition: Loss from upper left (facing) corner as shown, with some small losses along the edges to the tesserae.
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