The Mosaics of Roman Crete
Art, Archaeology and Social Change

This book examines the rich corpus of mosaics created in Crete during the Roman and Late Antique eras.

Rebecca J. Sweetman (Author)

9781107018402, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 31 May 2013

403 pages, 65 b/w illus. 6 maps 1 table
26 x 18.3 x 2 cm, 1.1 kg

'… the first of its kind to focus on the rich corpus of mosaics from Crete dated to the Roman and late antiquity periods. …well-written and beautifully illustrated … provides an excellent overview of the mosaics in an area of the Roman empire with much potential for further work.' Anna Kouremenos, The Classical Review

This book examines the rich corpus of mosaics created in Crete during the Roman and Late Antique eras. It provides essential information on the style, iconography and chronology of the material, as well as discussion of the craftspeople who created them and the technologies they used. The contextualized mosaic evidence also reveals a new understanding of Roman and Late Antique Crete. It helps shed light on the processes by which Crete became part of the Roman Empire, its subsequent Christianization and the pivotal role the island played in the Mediterranean network of societies during these periods. This book provides an original approach to the study of mosaics and an innovative method of presenting a diachronic view of provincial Cretan society.

1. Introduction
2. The archaeology of Crete
3. Iconography of Cretan mosaics
4. Date and distribution
5. Urban and architectural contexts
6. Mosaics of Crete: craftspeople, technology, and workshops
7. The provincial view, globalization, and Christianization.

Subject Areas: Classical Greek & Roman archaeology [HDDK], Classical history / classical civilisation [HBLA1], Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA], Mosaics: artworks [AFPM], History of art: ancient & classical art,BCE to c 500 CE [ACG]