According to the professor of classical archaeology Panos Valavanis, the mosaic effectively ends speculation that the Amphipolis tomb may have been a Roman creation.
The mosaic discovered at the Kasta tomb amounts to a stunning find and is one that has taken archaeologists completely by surprise, given that to date only simple mosaic designs have been uncovered in Macedonian tombs.
Many questions remain about the mosaic and what it means for the deceased interred in the tomb. However it appears to have ended speculation about the dating of the tomb, according to professor of archaeology, Panos Valavanis, placing it firmly in the last quarter of the 4th century B.C. This would be compatible with the tomb belonging to one of Alexander the Great’s generals.
The mosaic was found behind the Caryatids and takes up the entire expanse of the excavated area – that is 4.5 meters wide and at least 3 meters long, while archaeologists have yet to clear away all of the soil.
The work is of a stunning quality, even possessing a sense of perspective and making use of shadows.
The leading figure appears to be Hermes, the Greek god of travel and guide to the underworld wearing a cloak and a hat, winged sandals and holding a staff. He is leading a two-horsed chariot with a bearded rider who is wearing a laurel wreath.
Could the latter be a depiction of the deceased buried in the tomb? Or is the mosaic a representation of Hades kidnapping Persephone, Hades being represented by the bearded man, and Persephone yet to be revealed?
Panos Valavanis, is a professor of Classical Archaeology at the University of Athens, for his interpretation of the stunning find.
Have mosaics been found at Macedonian graves before?
"Yes, twice but in both instances they were simple, decorative patterns with geometric motifs. The first instance was in Amphipolis again, in a tomb that was excavated by Lazaridis [an archaeologist who excavated numerous tombs over three decades beginning in the 1950s], where the floor is decorated with black and white rhombuses and another area where the mosaic has no added decoration, it is made of up simple tiles. The second instance is the Macedonian grave of Karitsas, close to Dion [an archaeological site in Pieria in the north of Greece] where again the mosaic floor is simple, a circle with four rows of dark tiles."
But at a Macedonian tomb it is the first time we have found such an elaborate mosaic floor. It is the first time we have such a magnificent depiction.”
A work of exquisite craftsmanship
“It’s stunning… It is a work of superior craftsmanship. The quality of the construction is exquisite. There is a great variety of different colored tiles, there is the use of shadows, a third dimension. It is not easy to achieve such a result with natural stones. It is a work worthy of the great craftsmen of the magnificent mosaics of Pellas. One possibility is that the creator was an artist of the Macedonian elite who at some point they invited to Amphipolis.”
It’s stunning… It is a work of superior craftsmanship. The quality of the construction is exquisite
"The announcement by the Ministry of Culture is precise. It is a description and an attempt at an interpretation. We have Hermes as a psychopomp [soul guide] who is leading the chariot to the underworld."
"The first possible interpretation of the mosaic to date is that it is Hades who is seizing Persphone. The fact that we have a bearded, aggressive male figure etc. brings us very close to representations of Hades."
“Furthermore, the fact that he is holding the reins with one hand, the right, means that he has his left hand to the back, he has opened it, perhaps to seize Persephone. Furthermore, there is a lot of room behind his body towards the edge of the depiction which is still covered in soil. That means we are expecting other figures.
The most likely possibility therefore is that we have typical representation of the kidnapping of Persephone by Hades, with Hermes as the guide to the underworld. Of course we have a two-horse chariot and not, as is more common, a four-horse chariot, but that is not a detail that would be reason for significant doubt.
"the creator of the Mosaic may have represented the deceased as the driver of the chariot to the Underworld"
A less likely possibility could be representing Hades with the deceased occupant of the tomb – in the place, that is, of Persephone. Additionally, there is a third version - although this would be a major novelty - that the creator of the Mosaic may have represented the deceased as the driver of the chariot to the Underworld, but as ever at this point, this is only speculation.
The mosaic removes doubts about the date
The official announcement regarding the mosaic by the Ministry of Culture refers to the last quarter of the 4th century BC. ‘Rightly,’ says Mr Valavanis. “With the uncovering of the mosaic the question of the dating of the tomb is definitively settled. It dates to the last quarter of the 4th century BC – perhaps the beginning of the 3rd century, but in no way any later.”
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