VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Casa delle Colombe a mosaico or House of the Mosaic Doves.

Excavated 1767, 1885 and 1928.

Entrance level

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VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Room ‘h’, the east ala, looking east from atrium.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Room ‘h’, the east ala, looking towards the north-east corner.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘h’, the east ala, looking towards the south-east corner.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. c.1930. Flooring in east ala, room “h”.

The flooring consisted of beaten flakes of travertine and was separated from the atrium by a mosaic threshold (0.58m wide), in which the black and white tesserae alternate, and had a narrow band of two rows of masonry tesserae bordering around them. 

DAIR 41.693. Photo © Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Rom, Arkiv.

See Pernice, E.  1938. Pavimente und Figürliche Mosaiken: Die Hellenistische Kunst in Pompeji, Band VI. Berlin: de Gruyter, (taf. 32.4).

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2024. Looking south across atrium. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019.

Looking south-west across south side of atrium, with doorway to room ‘n’, on left, room ‘m’, centre, and room ‘o’. on right.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Looking south through doorway of room ‘n’.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Looking south towards doorway threshold into room ‘n’.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Looking south. Room ‘n’, the doorway to oecus or triclinium in south wall of east ala/south-east corner of atrium.

The floor, hardly preserved today, was made of a white mosaic with small tiles (tesserae) without any border.

In the centre would have been the emblema with the doves on a basin, derived from a model by Sosus of Pergamon and admired by Pliny.

The emblema is now in the Naples Archaeological Museum, see below.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Emblema from floor, found in March 1885 in room ‘n’.

Mosaic of three doves on a water basin with three legs in the form, of lion’s feet.

A fourth dove is about to land and two more are on the shelf below.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114281.

See Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1885, (p.162).

See Mau, in Bullettino dell’Instituto di Corrispondenza Archeologica (DAIR), 1886, (p.151).

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Emblema from floor, found in March 1885 in room ‘n’.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114281. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

According to the information card –

Doves drinking from a basin.

Mosaic emblema in opus vermiculatum made from polychrome tesserae.

The mosaic, inspired by a prototype by Sosus of Pergamon, depicts doves drinking from a bronze basin.

The scene is framed by a garland of fruit, ribbons, masks and berries. (First quarter of the Ist century BC.)

(Colombe che si abbeverano.

Emblema pavimentale in opus vermiculatum di tessere policrome.

Il mosaico, ispirato al prototipo di Sosos di Pergamo, raffigura delle colombe che bevono attorno a un bacino bronzeo. La scena è inquadrata da una ghirlanda di frutta, nastri, maschere e bacche.  Primo quarto del I secolo a.C.)

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Detail of two Doves on water basin, from floor emblema, found in March 1885 in room ‘n’.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114281. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Detail of border-edge of mosaic showing mask, and garland with fruit.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114281. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Painting by Niccolini, showing central emblema from room ‘n’.

The mosaic threshold, above and below the emblema, are from the tablinum, room ‘m’.

See Niccolini F, 1896. Le case ed i monumenti di Pompei: Volume Quarto. Napoli. Nuovi Scavi, Tav. V.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Room ‘n’, decorated white mosaic floor in oecus/triclinium, looking south-east.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘n’, decorated white mosaic floor in oecus/triclinium, looking south-east.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019.

Room ‘n’, decorated white mosaic floor in oecus/triclinium, looking north-east across site of emblema.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. c.1930. Triclinium “n”, white mosaic flooring.

DAIR 41.694. Photo © Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Rom, Arkiv.

See Pernice, E.  1938. Pavimente und Figürliche Mosaiken: Die Hellenistische Kunst in Pompeji, Band VI. Berlin: de Gruyter, (taf. 32.5)

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘n’, looking south from oecus/ triclinium towards remains of lower room ‘4’, another triclinium.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Room ‘n’, looking north through doorway along east side of atrium.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Looking east across rooms from VIII.2.30.

On the left are rooms ‘o’, (nearest) ‘m’ and ‘n’ on the street level, visible in the centre right is room ‘4’ on the lower rear level.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. October 2023. Looking south across atrium towards tablinum. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Looking south-east across doorway to room ‘m’, the tablinum. decorated with mosaic.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Remaining flooring in north-east corner of tablinum.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room “m”, mosaic in doorway threshold leading into tablinum from atrium.

The mosaic threshold towards the atrium ‘c’ was made up of a large design of meandering swastikas showing squares enclosing a black central cross.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Looking north through doorway of tablinum towards atrium and across to entrance doorway.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Pre-1937-39. (but described as VI.2.30 on the photo).

Looking north-west from tablinum (room m) towards west ala and rooms on west side of atrium.

Photo courtesy of American Academy in Rome, Photographic Archive. Warsher collection no. 934.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. c.1930. Room “m”, flooring in tablinum.

DAIR 41.690. Photo © Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Rom, Arkiv.

See Pernice, E.  1938. Pavimente und Figürliche Mosaiken: Die Hellenistische Kunst in Pompeji, Band VI. Berlin: de Gruyter, (taf. 32.1).

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Room ‘m’, found in tablinum in February 1885.

Mosaic with a circular pattern of squares and triangles and with a duck in each corner.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114280. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

See Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1885, p. 49. 

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Doorway to room ‘m’, the tablinum. Looking south across remains of tablinum decorated with mosaic.

According to Jashemski, at the rear of the tablinum was a terrace on street level which was preceded by a colonnaded portico.

See Jashemski, W. F., 1993. The Gardens of Pompeii, Volume II: Appendices. New York: Caratzas. (p.209 incl: Fig 243-4, reconstruction drawing).

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room “m”, decorated floor in tablinum, looking south-west.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. September 2019. Looking south from tablinum.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Looking south-west from atrium. On the left is the doorway to room ‘m’.

In the centre of the south wall of room ‘i’, the west ala, is the doorway to room ‘o’ with stairs to upper floor, and latrine beneath.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Looking south through doorway of room ‘o’ with stairs to upper floor, on right.

The floor was formed of a white mosaic with black border, in the centre of which was the emblema showing a lion and leopard, below.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Found in room ‘o’ with stairs, on right from tablinum, March 1885. 

Mosaic of a lion that clutches a leopard among marshy leaves.

The floor in which it was found was cracked and subsiding and this has damaged the representation of the lion.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum, inv. no. 114282.

According to the information card, it was found in the Winter triclinium, –

Lion and leopard.

Mosaic emblema in opus vermiculatum made from polychrome tesserae. In a rocky landscape, a lion clutches a leopard between its paws.

The mosaicist (musiarius) managed to convey the figurative force of the Hellenistic cartoon in the ferocious expression of the lion and its thick mane. (First quarter of the Ist century BC.)

(Leone e leopardo.

Emblema pavimentale in opus vermiculatum di tessere policrome.

In un paesaggio roccioso, un leone afferra tra le zampe un leopardo. Il musivarius ha saputo rendere l’efficacia figurativa del cartone ellenistico

soprattutto nell’espressione feroce del felino e nella folta criniera. Primo quarto del I secolo a.C.)

Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Found in room ‘o’ with stairs, on right from tablinum, March 1885. 

Mosaic of a lion that clutches a leopard among marshy leaves.

The floor in which it was found was cracked and subsiding and this has damaged the representation of the lion.

Now in Naples Archaeological Museum.  Inventory number 114282.

See Notizie degli Scavi di Antichità, 1885, p. 162.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Room ‘o’, detail of leopard from mosaic. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. Room ‘o’, detail of lion from mosaic. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella. September 2024.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. c.1930. Triclinium “o” (on west/right of tablinum), white mosaic flooring with black border.

DAIR 41.691. Photo © Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Rom, Arkiv.

See Pernice, E.  1938. Pavimente und Figürliche Mosaiken: Die Hellenistische Kunst in Pompeji, Band VI. Berlin: de Gruyter, (taf. 32.2)

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘o’, remains of stairs to upper floor.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘o’, steps to upper floor.

VIII.2.34 Pompeii. May 2006. Room ‘o’, looking north from room with stairs, along west side of atrium ‘c’.

Part 3      Part 1      Lower levels      VIII.2.34 Plan