The Alexander Mosaic A Masterpiece of Mosaic One

The Alexander Mosaic A Masterpiece of Mosaic

One of the greatest achievements of the mosaic artist. From a distance it could easily be mistaken for a well-executed painting

Key Information Size: 5. 5 x 3. 2 metres l Date: circa 120 BC, but probably based on a painting from circa 300 BC l Location: originally laid in the exedra in the House of the Faun. Now in Museo Nazionale, Naples l

Subject Matter The two key figures: Alexander the Great and Darius III (Persian King) l Alexander on horseback on the left, Darius in chariot on right l A battle between Greeks and Persians, probably the Battle of Issos (333 BC), possibly the Battle of Gaugamela (331 BC) l In both Battles, Darius flees from the Greeks l

Style More like a painting than a mosaic l A much more 3 D picture than a mosaic would normally present. l A realistic depiction of the scene by using: l -Highlighting -Shadowing -Foreshortening -Three-quarter views -Overlapping

Links to a 3 rd/4 th Century BC Painting Limitation of colours to white, red, black (and combinations of these) l This is the ‘four-colour’ technique adopted by Greek painters in the 4 th/5 th C BC l The scarcity of landscape features (tree/few rocks) l Shallow depth of field in the scene l Any depth at all only being conveyed by foreshortening and overlapping l