Fragment of Floor Mosaic from the upper level of the House of the Bird Rinceau, room 1, Antioch (Daphne), Syria
- Culture
- Byzantine, 394–1204, 1261–1453
- Date
- c.526–540
- Material
- Marble and limestone
- excavated in
- Antakya, Hatay province, Turkey, Asia
- Classification
- Architectural elements, stone & mineral
- Collection
- Ancient Art
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 208
- Dimensions
- 45 x 84 in. (114.3 x 213.3 cm)
- Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 742:1940
NOTES
The undulating rinceau (vine) that forms the central part of this mosaic fragment was a popular border motif as far back as the Hellenistic period (331–31 BCE) when animals, grapes, and vines alluded to the god of wine, Dionysus (Greek) or Bacchus (Roman). In the Christian context of 6th-century Syria, the vine scroll acquired a new meaning, calling to mind the words of the evangelist John 15: 1-5: “I am the true vine...You are the branches. He who abides in me bears much fruit.”
Provenance
1934
Excavated at Daphne, near Antioch, Syria [1]
- 1940
Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD
1940 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Baltimore Museum of Art [2]
Notes:
[1] Per excavation report [Campbell, William Alexander, "The Third Season of Excavation at Antioch-on-the-Orontes." American Journal of Archaeology 40.1 (1936), p. 1 and 8].
[2] Document of Board Approval, dated May 27, 1940 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, May 2, 1940.
Excavated at Daphne, near Antioch, Syria [1]
- 1940
Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD
1940 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Baltimore Museum of Art [2]
Notes:
[1] Per excavation report [Campbell, William Alexander, "The Third Season of Excavation at Antioch-on-the-Orontes." American Journal of Archaeology 40.1 (1936), p. 1 and 8].
[2] Document of Board Approval, dated May 27, 1940 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, May 2, 1940.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.
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