An intact ancient mosaic discovered during the restoration of a historic municipal building in Istanbul is now a floor once again, covered in plexiglass and welcoming visitors to the new Zeytinburnu Mosaic Museum.
Visitors to Turkey’s newest museum walk through elevated glass walkways, which are themselves suspended above the actual floors. Mosaics are not pieces mounted on walls, but surfaces that remain exactly where they were first placed, preserving their context for all to see.
Beyond the floor, the museum presents terracotta vessels, coins from different centuries and marble sarcophagi discovered at the site. With its library and exhibition spaces, the institution is more than one archaeological stop, part of a wider cultural revitalization in Zeiten Brno.
The 190-square-meter (2,045-square-foot) mosaic floor was discovered in 2015 when the Ottoman-era military hospital building from 1893 was being converted into an art center. Ornamental patterns of stars, geometric knots, polygonal motifs, and floral mosaics date to the 4th or 5th century. It was probably installed in a suburban Roman villa, as the location was outside the ancient walls of Constantinople.
All construction was suspended and an organized archaeological excavation was carried out. In addition to the complete mosaic, subsequent excavations in 2019 uncovered a marble sarcophagus containing the skeletal remains of two people, a brick tomb, terracotta vases and coins. They date to different periods, confirming the use of the site for centuries after the pavement was made.
Turkey has a strong patronage of Roman and Byzantine mosaics, and there are currently eight museums in the country dedicated to exhibiting these masterpieces of ancient art. What distinguishes the Zeiten Brno Mosaic Museum from the Hatay Archaeological Museum, known for its collection of ancient mosaics of unparalleled variety and quality, is that its mosaics are left in situ rather than removed, preserved and reinstalled on display. The only treat to compare is in a hotel that has now become an accidental museum due to the fact that the world’s largest mosaic, a stunning tour de force of geometric patterns and psychedelic floor undulations, was discovered there during construction.
