A Multicolored Marble Mosaic Floor Was Discovered In The Ancient Sunken Roman City Of Baiae
Deep down in the ancient sunken Roman city of Baiae, a multicolored marble mosaic floor was uncovered. According to the Archaeological Park of the Phlegraean Fields, experts were working on restoring the find.
The piece once served as the floor of a reception room in a Roman villa, which is a type of house that people of high status lived in. It is also an example of “opus sectile,” a mosaic work made of marble, glass, and pearl that was cut and arranged to create patterns or images.
Baiae was an ancient Roman settlement situated on the shore of the Gulf of Pozzuoli in what is now southern Italy.
The Gulf of Pozzuoli forms the western part of the Gulf of Naples. At the site of Baiae, the wealthiest and most elite members of Rome had their villas built, including well-known rulers Julius Caesar, Nero, and Hadrian.
The coastal location provided beautiful views of the sea, and its natural hot springs were also a point of attraction.
Seneca, a Stoic philosopher of ancient Rome, jotted down his thoughts about Baiae in a letter after visiting the city. He wrote that it had become a place of “vice” and that people should avoid going there.
“Though it has certain natural advantages, luxury claimed it for her own exclusive resort…to witness persons wandering drunk on the beach, the riotous reveling of sailing parties, the lakes a-din with choral song, and all the other ways in which luxury, when it is, so to speak, released from the restraints of law not merely sins, but blazons its sins abroad — why must I witness all this?” wrote the philosopher.
Eventually, all the partying and other mischievous activities that took place in Baiae came to an end due to nature. The Gulf of Pozzuoli lies in the large hollow of a supervolcano known as the Phlegraean Fields.
In this region, volcanic activity, such as the movement of magma in underground chambers, led to the submersion of the lower parts of Baiae over time. Other ancient coastal sites along the edge of the gulf were affected as well.
Andrew Mayovskyy – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Today, the submerged sections of Baiae are protected as part of an underwater archaeological park, which contains several preserved statues, villas, Roman mosaics, and more.
The recently discovered opus sectile floor is composed of thousands of marble slabs in hundreds of different geometric shapes that create an elaborate design.
It measures approximately 2,700 square feet and is believed to have been constructed around the end of the Roman Empire before it sunk to the bottom of the sea.
Per the archaeological park, the restoration work has been very challenging because of how large and fragmented the remains of the floor are. Underwater images of the discovery can be seen on the park’s Facebook page.
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