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Museu Nacional Arqueològic de Tarragona

The Medusa mosaic

Detail of the central emblem of the Medusa mosaic, 2nd-3rd centuries AD, opus vermiculatum, 1.92 × 4.67 m (emblem, 57,7 × 57 cm). Museu Nacional Arqueològic de Tarragona.

Detail of the central emblem of the Medusa mosaic, 2nd-3rd centuries AD, opus vermiculatum, 1.92 × 4.67 m (emblem, 57,7 × 57 cm). Museu Nacional Arqueològic de Tarragona.

Central emblem of a floor mosaic inspired by the myth of Perseus that depicts the head of the Medusa. The preserved part was laid in situ by an expert craftsman and its highlights are the scene of Perseus and Andromeda and this exceptional imported central emblem.

This is the finest of all the mosaics found in Tarraco. It was discovered in the residential zone of the Roman city during quarrying for the construction of the modern port and was transferred to the Archaeological Museum in 1857. It would have been part of the floor decoration in a domus.

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