A stunning mosaic unmatched in Syrian art history was unveiled last week after excavations in Homs, the war-torn country’s third largest urban area.
The Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums dated the 65-foot-long (20 meter) decorative flooring back to the Roman era, some 1600 years ago.
A large circle in the middle of the mosaic, which used half-inch painted tiles to depict epic scenes, contained images of ‘Achilles’ from Homer’s The Iliad, which told of the Trojan War between Troy and the Greeks.
There are also depictions of Greek or Roman gods, like Neptune (Poseidon) and Hercules, as well as the mythological Amazonian queen Penthesilea.
“What is in front of us is a discovery that is rare on a global scale,” said Hamman Saad, a senior official at Syria’s General Directorate of Museums and Antiquities.
The mosaic was discovered in a 4th-century building in the city of al-Rastan, which may have been a public bathhouse.
#Nabu is pleased that it has participated with the DGAMs in #Syria in the endeavour to uncover a fantastic mosaic piece attributed to the Roman era in al-Rastan, Homs Governorate.
— Nabu Museum (@nabumuseum) October 12, 2022
The Directorate announced the news this morning
We will publish some literature on this unique piece pic.twitter.com/dgXlAL95D2
This video below shows the area where it was found.
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Excavations will continue in tunnels and surrounding ruins of hallways and other rooms. See more photos here.
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