Mosaics as History: The Near East from Late Antiquity to Islam

Revealing Antiquity

by Glen W. Bowersock

Over the past century, exploration and serendipity have uncovered mosaic after mosaic in the Near East--maps, historical images, mythical figures, and religious scenes that constitute an immense treasure of new testimony from antiquity. The stories these mosaics tell unfold in this brief, richly informed book by a preeminent scholar of the classical world.

G. W. Bowersock considers these mosaics a critical part of the documentation of the region's ancient culture, as expressive as texts, inscriptions on stone, and architectural remains. In their complex language, often marred by time, neglect, and deliberate defacement, he finds historical evidence, illustrations of literary and mythological tradition, religious icons, and monuments to civic pride. Eloquently evoking a shared vision of a world beyond the boundaries of individual cities, the mosaics attest to a persistent tradition of Greek taste that could embrace Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in a fundamentally Semitic land, and they suggest the extent to which these three monotheistic religions could themselves embrace Hellenism.

With copious color illustrations, Bowersock's efforts return us to Syrian Antioch, Arabia, Jewish and Samaritan settlements in Palestine, the Palmyrene empire in Syria, and the Nabataean kingdom in Jordan, and show us the overlay of Hellenism introduced by Alexander the Great as well as Roman customs imported by the imperial legions and governors. Attending to one of the most evocative languages of the ages, his work reveals a complex fusion of cultures and religions that speaks to us across time.

Genres: History, Art, Nonfiction, Religion

160 pages, Hardcover

First published November 15, 2006

About the author

Glen Warren Bowersock is a contemporary American scholar of the ancient world. He is the author of over a dozen books and has published over 300 articles on Greek, Roman, and Near Eastern history and culture as well as the classical tradition.

Reviews

[Tony Gualtieri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mosaics as part of the history of late antiquity. They show cartography, cities, and the transition between pagan myth and monotheism. Even their mutilations give evidence of the scope and duration of the iconoclasm of the eighth century.

[Dana Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting and quick read with lots of pictures, which argues for a great deal of cultural continuity in the 6th-8th centuries, as reflected in different thematic aspects of mosaics. I especially enjoyed the chapters about images of maps and cities, the idea that many popular mythological representations are linked to the mime, and the presentation of some fairly recent and striking discoveries in Jordan. Some conclusions were a bit far-reaching (the unique and baffling image of a major city called "Gregoria" must be Antioch? the late antique Near East as some kind of multi-cultural Hellenistic utopia?) but it's certainly a thought-provoking and valuable work.