IDNO

T.152980.RPT

Description

View of a mosaic floor in the Villa Romana del Casale, against a curved stone wall. The mosaic shows a woman with blue skin, and a tiger. [IJ 24/01/2023]

Place

S Europe; Italy; Sicily; Enna; Piazza Armerina; Villa Romana del Casale [Sicilia]

Cultural Affliation

Named Person

Photographer

Poignant, Axel

Collector / Expedition

Date

1957 - 1958

Collection Name

Poignant Collection

Source

Poignant, Roslyn

Format

Colour Transparency

Primary Documentation

Other Information

T.152858.RPT - T.153307.RPT were located in the drawer file of transparency sheets, numbered C1022/.

T.152979.RPT - T.152995.RPT were located in a transparency sheet, numbered C1022/7.

Bibliographic reference: “Roman exploitation of the countryside is symbolized by the Villa Romana del Casale (in Sicily), the centre of the large estate upon which the rural economy of the Western Empire was based. The villa is one of the most luxurious of its kind. It is especially noteworthy for the richness and quality of the mosaics which decorate almost every room; they are the finest mosaics in situ anywhere in the Roman world.” UNESCO (1997). Villa Romana del Casale. [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/832/] [Isabella Jakobsen, 08/11/2022]

Bibliographic reference: “For the exceptional richness of its architectural and decorative elements, this late Roman structure has become of highly prominent importance within the programme for the safeguarding and valorisation of Sicilian heritage. […]
The Villa, under UNESCO protection since 1997, belonged to a member of the Roman senatorial aristocracy, perhaps a Roman governor (Praefectus Urbi). Some scholars believe however that it was instead built and expanded on direct imperial commission. Due to its beauty and complexity, it can be considered one of the most important examples of a state residence among its contemporaries in the Roman West. The high profile of its patron is eloquently celebrated through an iconographic programme that was stylistically influenced by the art of the African mosaicists who were called to do the work and unfolds in rich compositions decorating an impressive number of rooms, both public and private in nature.
[…]
Over the course of time, the historical evidence found around the site occupied by the late antique villa increased the interest of many scholars, who began exploring its remains starting in the first years of the nineteenth century and then again in the first years of the twentieth century, with the excavations led by Biagio Pace and Paolo Orsi, up to the major excavation campaign carried out in 1950s and early 1960s by Vinicio Gentili, followed by numerous initiatives targeting the consolidation of the mosaics. […]
Since 2006, the site has been the subject of a systematic restoration and conservation programme […].
The intervention concerns around 3000 square meters of mosaic and opus sectile [marble tiling technique] pavement in addition to numerous polychrome wall paintings, as well as the three-dimensional reconfiguration of the spaces. The formal and material methods that were adopted are different than those of the past, in order to better preserve and make use of this residence, considered one of the most prestigious monumental testimonies to antiquity in the Mediterranean.” Councillor’s Office for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity (2012). Archaeological Park of the Villa del Casale: Introductory Guide, pages 2-4. [https://www.villaromanadelcasale.it/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/guida_042012_ENG.pdf] [Isabella Jakobsen, 08/11/2022]

Bibliographic reference: "The antechamber of the Basilica, called the corridor of the “great hunt", for its exceptional mosaic representation of the ‘venationes’ [hunts], hunts conducted for the capture of animals to be exhibited in circus spectacles in Rome. Thus a great geographical map of the Roman Empire unfolds in a single space, spanning from the furthermost west to the furthermost east. It is populated by a wide variety of animals, ranging from the ferocious, like lions, to the singular, like rhinoceri, to the mythological, like griffons, and peopled with soldier hunters, horsemen who direct the operations and attendants responsible for the transport and loading of the wild beasts onto the ships." Councillor’s Office for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity (2012). Archaeological Park of the Villa del Casale: Introductory Guide, page 7. [https://www.villaromanadelcasale.it/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/guida_042012_ENG.pdf] [Isabella Jakobsen, 10/10/2022]

Bibliographic reference: "The mosaic in the southern apse is entirely preserved and is enclosed by a frame characterised by a wavy band with alternating and gradient colours. In the centre, a female figure sitting on a rock stands out: she is represented with dark skin and almost-blue highlights, thick and curly hair which is held up by a light-coloured ribbon. She is wearing bracelets and a necklace with a pendant in the middle, and a red garment is draped over her left shoulder, covering her back, and finally covering and wrapping around her legs. The woman is holding two significant objects: a long ivory tusk is leaning on her left arm, and a plant with long leaves is in her right.
Behind her, leaning on some rocks, there is another tusk, and a branch on which are hanging red ribbons of irregular lengths.
[...] Finally on the right, there is a female tiger, depicted with attention to detail: her orange-red fur is dashed with black lines, her belly is white, her claws are visible and her jaws open wide.
This ensemble has been the subject of various interpretations by different scholars, who consider the female figure to be a personification of Africa, Arabia, Egypt, Libya, the East, and Asia. The most attractive interpretations are concerning India and Ethiopia. The presence of the phoenix, the tiger, and the elephant could be explained by the former interpretation, as they are animals present in that region. If we are dealing with this personification, the choice would be coherent with the entire programme of the Great Hunt. The commissioner wanted to have represented, in this mosaic, all the parts of the known world, from the far West to the Far East, in order to show how the efficiency of the imperial army, and therefore the power of Rome, was extending itself throughout these territories.
Meanwhile a more recent interpretation hypothesises that we are dealing with a representation of Ethiopia, because of the correspondence between the different elements in the image. The presence of elephants and tigers in those regions was recorded in the Roman era, while one of the variants of the phoenix myth places its origins in Ethiopia. The woman has a particularly dark skin tone, which is characteristic of Central African populations. The tree which she is holding could be interpreted as an incense plant, which is present in those regions. Finally, the red ribbons on the branch could be the formidines, bands of various shapes and colours, used in hunting to scare and capture animals. This would link back to the fact that Ethiopia provided shows for Roman circus games, perhaps more than India, since the transport route was not as long and arduous.
We must remember that both of these regions were represented as faraway and mythical lands in celebratory panegyrics.” Cantamessa, G. (2013) La Villa Romana del Casale di Piazza Armerina. Palermo: Kalós, pages 168-9. [Translated from Italian by Isabella Jakobsen, 08/11/2022]