Back Ache Mosaics!

Just looking at all these iddy biddy stones all pieced together in a perfect puzzle perplexes me...not to mention makes my back ache in empathy.



Currently, only the manorial portions of the complex have been excavated. The housing for slaves, workshops, stables, etc. have not yet been located. And archaeologists believe an entire city remains to be unearthed nearby.



The mosaics are believed to be created by North African artists in the early 4th century at which time the North African provinces were considered the economic and artistic forefront. Polychrome mosaics were one of the specialities of the North African artists. A substantial part of the tesserae, the small colored stones, used in the mosaics are of African origin, so it seems the mosaicists have brought with them the colors they couldn't find locally.