MOSAIC PAVEMENT, SACELLUM OF THE HOSPITALIA, 118-124 CE. HADRIAN'S VILLA At the far end of the Hospitalia or guest quarters of Villa Adriana is this large room, with arched niches at the back which are part of the Republican-era nucleus of the Villa. In front of them is a statue base, and this room should be considered a sacellum or worship space, though we don't know to whom it was dedicated (perhaps Roma or the deified Augustus). Most striking is the black and white mosaic pavement, with a series of black circles on a white background. The circles overlap and the space of the overlapping part are black lozenges, like six links of a chain. The border we see most clearly at the front is a sequence of floral circles in black on a white background, with a reed-like series of black lines between the circles. The sacred space occupies the central axis and forms its decorative conclusion.

#MosaicMonday offers us a huge #geometric #mosaic #floor in #blackandwhite as part of the guest quarters or #Hospitalia. This was not a dining hall - that's next door - but a shrine or #sacellum for his middle-level guests to pay their devoirs to the divine. #AncientBluesky 🏺