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ROMAN AND LATE-ANTIQUE CRETAN MOSAICS

This book is the first of its kind to focus on the rich corpus of mosaics from Crete dated to the Roman and late-antique periods (first century B.C. to sixth century A.D.). S. has compiled an extensive catalogue of mosaics from both public and private contexts, and attempts to situate them against the general background of mosaic art in the wider empire and to deduce how these pavements augment our understanding of the social and cultural environment of Crete during the Roman period. Much of the information comes from S.’s Ph.D. thesis, Roman and Early Christian Mosaics of Crete (Nottingham University, 1999), and from subsequent articles. S. has established herself as an authority on the Roman period in Crete, and this book demonstrates her vast knowledge of the subject. The introduction sets out the main questions of the book and the context of the mosaics. The historical background of Crete from the late Hellenistic period to Late Antiquity is briefly outlined followed by a discussion of the island’s topography, settlement patterns and economy. The introduction ends with S.’s theoretical approach to the subject of culture change by considering two alternative viewpoints to the theory of ‘Romanization’: ‘Globalization’ and ‘Christianization’. She argues that the mosaics of Roman Crete provide the archaeological evidence for the application of these two theories which are analysed in-depth in Chapter 7. Chapter 2, ‘The Archaeology of Crete’, situates the mosaics in a framework of evidence from other contexts: graves, temples and churches, pottery, etc. S. suggests that the main reason for the establishment and growth of most sites during the Roman period appears to have been economic, primarily due to increased trade networks. Chapter 3, ‘Iconography of Cretan Mosaics’, looks at the various elements found on Cretan mosaics over a period of 700 years. A large number of black-and-white geometric mosaics in the first century A.D. suggests Italian influence, while polychrome figural mosaics overwhelmingly dominate across Crete, as elsewhere in the empire, starting in the second century A.D. Of the figured mosaics, S. has identified scenes depicting deities such as Dionysus, Poseidon, Medusa, the Hours and Seasons. Athletic and hunting scenes seem also to have been popular and to these can be added scenes from the theatre, and animals and plants. S. suggests that the Cretan repertoire follows some empire-wide patterns in its breadth and iconography, but unique geometric elements help to formulate evidence of specific workshops and craftspeople (discussed in Chapter 6). Chapter 4, ‘Date and Distribution’, focuses on the methods used to date mosaics – stratigraphy, inscriptions mentioning dates or individuals and, more commonly, iconography. S. states that with the exception of the mosaics on the site of the Health Centre at THE CLASSICAL REVIEW 586