Triapsidal triclinium

The protagonists of the mosaics

The vast hall is decorated with mosaics narrating three cycles of Greek-Roman mythology: the twelve labours of Hercules in the central hall and the myth of Marsyas in the northern apse, the gigantomachy in the eastern apse and the myth of Lycurgus and Ambrosia in the southern apse.

In the floor mosaic of the twelve labours of Hercules, the hero protagonist is never depicted but is replaced by the effects of his strength against defeated enemies.

In the gigantomachy, the epic struggle between the gods of Olympus and the Giants, the latter, with their powerful and expressive bodies, are portrayed as anguipeds, namely, with serpents in place of the part below the knee.
Finally, in the last scene, linked to the Dionysian theme, we can observe the moment in which Lycurgus, King of Thrace and hostile to the worship of the god of wine, tries to kill Ambrosia (a follower of Bacchus) with a double-headed axe, who is providentially aided by a procession of maenads (female followers of the god of wine) and transformed into vines by Dionysus himself.As this myth reveals, a particularly frequent subject in the mosaics of the late antiquity villa are the metamorphoses, a symbol of the eternal relationship between man and surrounding nature.As in other rooms of the villa, the depicted scenes conceal edifying meanings.

The senses tell the Basilica

A day of hunting at the villa

The rural sacrifice

The mansio of Philosophiana. A stopping place

A small room represents one of the activities of the thermal bath route

A hidden meaning

The main nuclei of the Domus

The senses tell the Sacellum of the Lares

A chariot race, set in the circus Maximus of Rome, connects the villa to the city and centre of power

Outdoor breakfast

The senses tell the massage room

Auspicious symbols and perhaps the initials of the commissioner’s name decorate the mosaic of the apsidal room

The prestige of the dominus is revealed through the wall frescoes

The realistic depiction of a spa procession with a high-ranking female figure

The senses tell the private entrance to the spa

The senses tell the Bi-Apsed room

The senses tell the Quadrangular Peristyle

Solemn and majestic architecture to welcome a high-ranking commissioner

A small room used as a privileged entrance to the baths

The catalogue of animals

Is the profile of the dominus hidden among the scenes depicted in the mosaics?

An organic microcosm: the structure of the villa

Banquets and panegyrics enlivened the vast hall, against the background of a floor mosaic celebrating the feats of Hercules

The senses tell the Vestibule

Worship of the Lares

The capture of wild animals for the roman amphitheatre games

A royal room housed the Dominus during his audiences

The protagonists of the mosaic and the military themed frescoes

The late antiquity residence: locus amoenus and centre of administrative activities in the heart of Sicily

A line of armed men for an important Dominus

The paths of virus, a reflection of the Dominus

The Latifundium

The senses tell the Tri-Apsed Triclinium

The senses tell the bi-apsed ambulatory – Corridor of the “Great Hunt”

The golden age: hypotheses about the villa’s period of construction and clues

The senses tell the frigidarium

A large colonnaded portico, a place of connection between the rooms

High-ranking characters depicted in the mosaics of the apsidal niches of the frigidarium

An individual who has attracted the attention of scholars

A small room embellished with marble

The apotheosis of Hercules

Semi-public rooms

The public and private rooms of the villa

An official ceremony to welcome the Dominus

A view of the race from the imperial gallery

The possible celebration of a solemn event

Form of greeting or ritual?

An eloquent symbol: the signum

A dialogue between mythological and realistic scenes

The astral interpretation of the mosaic

The senses tell the room in the private apartment known as “small hunt”

The marble from the regions of the empire to decorate the basilica

The mosaics of the late antiquity residence

The senses tell the monumental entrance

The protagonists of the mosaics