Mosaics from whatever time period or location always have a
lot to tell about customs, religion, and simple daily life, and as such are very
valuable testimonies of our past.
Yet, as soon as the precious tesserae are exposed, the
question arises about what to do with the mosaic and about the best way to
preserve it.
The problem was first confronted during the 18th
century when sites like Pompeii and Herculaneum were
excavated. In those days, archaeology was not established as a proper science
and most of the finds were carried away to be displayed in the mansions of the
rich and famous. As a result, the mosaics were taken apart and the most
pleasing pictures were framed in simple or elaborate frames.
As the number of excavations steadily grew in the 19th and
20th centuries, archaeology matured equally and it became clear that
not all mosaics – and certainly not the larger ones – could be moved for
conservation inside a museum.
Another option was to rebury the mosaics. To this purpose
and probably by trial and error, different materials such as soil, gravel, or
sand were used to cover the mosaics. The most obvious material was the soil,
which was readily available at the excavation site. Besides, it made sense to
rebury the mosaics using the same material that had contributed to their survival
for many centuries. Nowadays, sand and gravel with or without plastic netting are
often implemented all over antique sites.
I often regret that I cannot actually have a look at those
hidden treasures although I totally understand the logic behind this decision.
However, standing at the entrance of the Royal Palace
in Aegae
and not being able to see the large round mosaic of the Tholos or Sanctuary is
rather frustrating. In other places, like in Dion, Greece,
(see: Dion,
the Macedonian Sanctuary), strolling among the remains of Roman
houses is not as rewarding as it could be if the many floors were exposed.
At times, in order to help the visitor visualize the wealth
of the mosaics in situ, shelters have been built to protect the precious stones
under all circumstances. There are many such cases, such as Pella,
Greece, or Nea
Paphos in Cyprus.
In the end, it all depends on the circumstances and the
locations where the mosaics are discovered. In Zeugma,
Turkey, (see: Zeugma, Border-town along the Euphrates River)
even larger floors were removed from the site because the old city was to be
flooded after the construction of a dam on the Euphrates.
The only way to save what could be saved was to remove the mosaics and shelter them
in a newly constructed museum in Gaziantep.
Mosaic floors that belong to extensive villas are nowadays
generally kept intact. A good example is the huge Villa of Piazza Armerina in Sicily
(best known for the pictures of the bikini-girls) which has been largely
roofed. On other occasions, the entire basement of the villa is cleared and
made accessible underground as is the case in Ravenna, Italy.
This site, called Tapeti
di Pietra (carpets of stone) had been discovered during the
construction of a parking lot underneath a modern building. Another similar
situation occurred in Antakya, Turkey (see: Antakya’s rich collection of mosaics) where
the heavily undulating mosaic floor will be incorporated into the hotel that is
under construction.
It appears that there are many options to safeguard a
mosaic floor, all depending on the location and the circumstances in which they
are found. Overall, the best and safest conservation choice is the reburial
technique. However, this has to be done very carefully and the site must be
kept under surveillance. It is sad to find mosaics disintegrating because the
layer of sand and gravel is not thick enough and curious or malicious visitors
scratch the protection away to expose the mosaics underneath. Many
archaeological sites in the Middle East and North Africa are being damaged
beyond repair like in Ptolemais, Libya (see: Ptolemais,
heritage of the Ptolemies in the Cyrenaica).
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