Archaeological Museum of Bologna

This floor mosaic was discovered by accident in 1831 during the excavation of a cellar under a palazzo near Porta San Mamolo.

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Unfortunately, due to the fortuitous circumstances surrounding its discovery, nothing is known about the building in which it was found, probably an elegant residence just outside Bologna. Made of large black and white tesserae, it was restored a number of times in antiquity. It depicts the sea god Triton, half animal and half man, as he plays a long tibia – a type of flute – and holds a rudder blade in his left hand as if it were a sceptre. The fish swimming around the god underscore the marine setting of the scene. Its coarse execution and the lack of harmony in the composition of the scene make it datable to a rather late period.

Provenance: Bologna, Via d’Azeglio 75
Datation: Late 2nd century AD
Material: mosaic