ARCE

Limestone cornice fragment in situ

Description:
Limestone cornice fragment in situ
Photographer:
Image capture by Edwin Brock
Date Created:
October 10, 1998
Collection:
Villa of the Birds Mosaic Conservation
Series:
Conservation work in progress
Subseries:
Early Roman Villa
Location:
Alexandria, Egypt and Al Iskandarīyah
Time Period:
Early Roman Empire
Topic:
Domestic architecture and Art, Greco-Roman
Genre:
black-and-white photographs
Conservation Note:
A large and well preserved fragment of entablature found directly on top of the courtyard pavement could provide a hint as to the architectural decoration of the house. It combines the Doric triglyph with elements of the Ionic cornice in a syncretic approach to architectural decoration that was common in Greco-Roman Alexandrian art. For further details on the architectural remains of Early Roman villa Alpha, see the Final report or Progress Report 2.
Creative Commons License:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Local ID:
arce_ca_vob_images_0309.tif
Project History:
At the heart of modern Alexandria in Kom el-Dikka lies an exceptional demonstration of Domestic architecture during the Roman Imperial period. The Early Roman villa named “Villa of the Birds” houses exceptionally well preserved mosaic floors, made of tesserae. True to its name, it contains Mosaic a-5 which depicts different bird species within seven different panels. Under the auspices of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE), Dr. Wojciech Kolataj and his team conserved the mosaic floors, constructed a shelter, and landscaped the surrounding area. Some related supplemental work was carried out by the Polish-Egyptian Preservation Mission, and sponsored jointly by the Supreme Council of Antiquities (currently the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities) and the Polish Center of Archaeology. Conservation work was made possible with the support of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (formerly the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities).
Funding Agency:
Villa of the Birds Mosaic Conservation project was made possible with funding by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Grant No. 263-G-00-93-00089-00 (formerly 263-0000-G-00-3089-00) and administered by the Egyptian Antiquities Project (EAP) of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE).