Reflections on Music Performance and Dancing in a Roman Mosaic Found on the Aventine

Abstract

This paper focuses on a figurative scene with musicians and dancers in one of the mosaics found in the grounds of Santa Sabina garden on the Aventine, currently preserved in the Vatican Museums. This representation has been the object of different interpretations and chronological analysis within the context of mime or, more recently, that of a banquet. This contribution delves into whether, judging by the analysis of the iconography and literary sources, these are images that respond to a stereotyped repertoire or they reflect customary practices of that time. Finally, we will also reflect upon to what extent the representation of the protagonists of the event is reliable. To address these questions, it has been necessary to date the mosaic to the beginning of the third century AD, establishing this chronology by comparing the geometric pattern of the mosaic with another found nearby, while also considering the revealing testimonies of contemporary authors, such as Clement of Alexandria.

Keywords

• Tibicines
• saltatrices
• saltatores
• dwarf
• convivium
• literary sources
• Clement of Alexandria

Aventine’de Bulunan Bir Roma Mozaiğinde Müzik Performansı ve Dans Üzerine Düşünceler

Abstract

Bu makale, Aventine’deki Santa Sabina bahçesinin arazisinde bulunan ve şu anda Vatikan Müzeleri’nde korunan mozaiklerden birinde betimlenen müzisyenler ve dansçıların olduğu figüratif bir sahneye odaklanmaktadır. Bu temsil, mim veya daha yakın zamanda bir ziyafet bağlamında farklı yorumların ve kronolojik analizlerin konusu olmuştur. Bu katkı, ikonografi ve edebi kaynakların analizine göre, bunların kalıplaşmış bir repertuvara yanıt veren görüntüler mi, yoksa o zamanın geleneksel uygulamalarını mı yansıttığını araştırmaktadır. Son olarak, olayın kahramanlarının temsilinin ne kadar güvenilir olduğu üzerinde de durulacaktır. Bu soruları ele almak için, mozaiğin geometrik desenini yakınlarda bulunan bir başka mozaik ile karşılaştırarak kronoloji oluşturulacak ve aynı zamanda İskenderiyeli Clement gibi çağdaşı yazarların açıklayıcı tanıklıklarını da göz önünde bulundurarak mozaiğin İS üçüncü yüzyılın başlarına tarihlendirilmesi gerekmektedir.

Keywords

• Tibisinler
• saltatrisler
• saltatores
• cüce
• convivium
• edebi kaynaklar
• İskenderiyeli Clement

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