A Roman mosaic floor, composed of scenes depicting pagan rites and oriental gods, was found under a Catholic cathedral in Italy, archaeologists say. The mosaic pavement, which measures 13 square meters and dates back to the 4th century AD, was excavated at a depth of approximately 4 meters from the surface during archaeological research in the crypt of the Cathedral at Reggio Emilia, in the center of northern Italy.
“The scale and the design of the mosaic panel formed the floor of the huge room. We believe that this was the residence of some wealthy Roman,”archaeologist Renata Kurina told Discovery News.
Of course, the fact that images of pagan gods lay for hundreds of years only at a depth of several meters under the cathedral is not very surprising, the archaeologist notes.
“The Catholic cathedral was erected directly on the pre-existing building structures. And this is normal for Reggio Emilia,”said Kurina.
Composed of tiny slabs of colored stones, glass cameos, and gold leaves, the intricate mosaic floor features geometric circles and discrete areas with little dancing figures, flowers and birds like magpies and peacocks.
And yet three major mythological scenes make the mosaic unique.
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“Naked figures are shown in all scenes. We are still trying to understand their meaning. I believe that the clues are still underground, so now we are continuing our excavations,”said the specialist.
I must say, these scenes are quite unusual. One scene - a naked figure falls into someone's hands, the other - two naked figures - a man and a woman - carrying jewelry. The woman is holding a freshly caught fish, while the man is holding two live ducks.
Another unusual scene shows a naked man wearing an ivy wreath on his head and holding a lotus flower in his right hand. In his left hand is a wand - a curved reed stick, which was used in ancient Rome for divination. One can regard this reed rod as a priestly symbol.
“Symbols such as the lotus flower and ivy can tell us that it was a private room dedicated to the cult of the Eastern gods,” concluded the archaeologist, head of the excavation.
