Ancient splendor Metro Israel Edition

According to the excavation project director Dr. Yosef Porat, mosaics in Byzantine palaces commonly depicted hunting motifs. These scenes, he explains, could portray animals hunting each other or - as is the case in the Caesarea mosaic - dogs chasing wild animals. There is some debate regarding the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Jerusalem post
Main Author Max, Danielle
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Jerusalem The Jerusalem Post Ltd 23.09.2005
Subjects
Caesar, Augustus
Neguer, Jacques
Porat, Yosef
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Summary:According to the excavation project director Dr. Yosef Porat, mosaics in Byzantine palaces commonly depicted hunting motifs. These scenes, he explains, could portray animals hunting each other or - as is the case in the Caesarea mosaic - dogs chasing wild animals. There is some debate regarding the function of the structure housing the Bird Mosaic. Archaeologists working on the site in 1955 conjectured that the mosaic floor formed part of an unroofed church. Porat, however, believes that the mansion probably belonged to a prominent citizen of Caesarea or an aristocrat associated with the province of Palestina Primae, of which Caesarea was capital. What the excavation did reveal is that the villa had been destroyed by fire. Porat has a theory to explain the fire. The Byzantine period in Caesarea ended around 640 CE, when Arabs captured the country. Porat assumes that one of the Arab conquerors' first actions would have been to destroy any buildings located outside the city walls, including this villa. "It was taken, plundered, and set on fire," he says.