The history of mosaic

Mosaics are incredibly old, but how old exactly? And who started making mosaics? And were patterns already being made back then? These are interesting questions that we'll answer in this article. We'll discuss the Greeks and Romans, the times afterward, and some specific questions. Questions or comments? Leave them in the comments.

The history of mosaic

Mosaics are ancient. Incredibly ancient. According to various sources, the first mosaics date back to the second half of the third millennium BC. Yes, that's ancient. These mosaics were found in Abra, Mesopotamia. They consisted of various pieces of colored stone, shells, and ivory. The first glazed mosaic tiles were discovered as early as 1500 BC. However, the familiar mosaic patterns we know today weren't discovered until the Sassanid era.

Greeks and Romans

The Greeks were passionate about mosaics, evident in their frequency and the shapes in which they began laying them. The Greek style developed in the third century BC. The subjects of these designs were often mythological creatures, gods, wealth, and nature.

A more prestigious art form of that time was painting, so it's quite possible that many mosaics were based on paintings from that period. The themes of the artworks were also largely the same. The Romans were happy to adopt mosaics from the Greeks. It was especially a good way to decorate the homes of the wealthy and add an extra dimension of art to homes. Mosaic flooring was particularly popular at the time.

Most of the artists who created Roman mosaics were Greek, as they had more experience with this art form. Most of these artists were slaves who worked for and in the homes of the wealthy. Such floor mosaics can still be admired in places like Tunis, Tunisia.

Two currents

In the Greco-Roman period, there were two techniques, or schools of thought. The " Opus Vermiculatum " technique used small, thin stones. These were made into small panels and then moved to the larger work and laid there.

The other technique was " Opus Tessellatum ," which used larger stones laid directly on site. An Italian style using black stones on a white background was a major influence.

Christian mosaics

At the end of the 4th century, many basilicas were built in Europe by Christians. In these basilicas, the walls and ceilings were often covered with mosaics, and artworks about Christianity were created within these mosaics, as was also the case in the paintings of that period.

In the following century, Ravenna, then the capital of the Western Roman Empire, also became the capital of mosaic art. The mausoleum in this city was decorated with mosaics around 425 to 430. After Ravenna was conquered by the Eastern Roman Empire, the highest-quality mosaics ever created were produced in this city in the mid-6th century.

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire deserves special mention in this blog because mosaic art flourished during this period. Byzantine churches were completely covered with mosaic artworks, often in gold. From the 6th to the 15th century, mosaic was a highly prized art form in this empire. However, most Byzantine works were destroyed over the years, as were Roman works.

During the Middle Ages

The last truly successful period for the development of mosaic art was the 12th and 13th centuries. In Rome, this art form developed enormously; fewer restrictions were imposed on artists, resulting in an increasing number of works. The subject matter of these works also changed. Fewer religious works were produced, and increasingly more realistic works, often inspired by nature, were created.

The most famous works of this period were the Basilica of Saint Clemente, the facade of Santa Maria in Trastevere and San Paolo fuori le Mura.

Conclusion

That concludes the history of mosaic. Our article has been condensed, as there's much more to say about the history of mosaic, such as developments in the Middle East and the influences of other religions. But we'll delve into that in another blog post.

We hope we've provided a good overview of the history of mosaics. If you have any other questions or suggestions, please let us know.

View our various mosaics here .