Biapsidal ambulacrum known as "corridor of the great hunt"

An individual who has attracted the attention of scholars

The mosaic ornament in the “corridor of the great hunt” is a great representation of the techniques used to capture and transport exotic and ferocious animals to the imperial estates . It gives us the most extensive example depicted in antiquity.
Among the soldier-hunters who prevail in the eastern part of the mosaic, servants in charge of the transportation and imperial officials who direct and supervise the capture operations, in the sixth scene a group of three figures stands out from the pattern of the narrative.
Among them emerges the central one representing a man with a round hat, the pileus pannonicus (Pannonian cap), a cloak with a large orbiculus that covers a light tunic with sleeves bordered at the wrists and a cingulum, the bright red military belt tightened at the waist, decorated with plates according to rank.This figure is shown with a mature face with a deep gaze, leaning on a tall mushroom walking stick.
Each of these elements leads us to think that he is a high-ranking military man flanked by personal guards, the protectores, equipped with large shields.


Some scholars have correlated such an authoritative image to the dominus of the late antiquity residence, to whose profile the mosaicists perhaps wanted to pay homage by representing him in one of the most important rooms, located close to the basilica where he exercised his administrative and management functions.
Other hypotheses have instead assumed that the owner of the domus was a dux, a commander of troops stationed along the borders of the Empire or even interpreted the image as that of the Emperor, Maximian or Maxentius.

Solemn and majestic architecture to welcome a high-ranking commissioner

The mansio of Philosophiana. A stopping place

The capture of wild animals for the roman amphitheatre games

The protagonists of the mosaics

A line of armed men for an important Dominus

The apotheosis of Hercules

A small room embellished with marble

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

Form of greeting or ritual?

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

The senses tell the monumental entrance

The catalogue of animals

Worship of the Lares

The senses tell the Sacellum of the Lares

An official ceremony to welcome the Dominus

A hidden meaning

Semi-public rooms

A dialogue between mythological and realistic scenes

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

The senses tell the private entrance to the spa

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

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

The paths of virus, a reflection of the Dominus

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

The rural sacrifice

The senses tell the Basilica

The public and private rooms of the villa

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

Outdoor breakfast

The senses tell the Vestibule

A view of the race from the imperial gallery

A royal room housed the Dominus during his audiences

The mosaics of the late antiquity residence

The astral interpretation of the mosaic

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

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

The senses tell the Quadrangular Peristyle

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

A small room used as a privileged entrance to the baths

The protagonists of the mosaic and the military themed frescoes

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

An individual who has attracted the attention of scholars

The senses tell the frigidarium

An eloquent symbol: the signum

The possible celebration of a solemn event

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

The Latifundium

The senses tell the Tri-Apsed Triclinium

The main nuclei of the Domus

A day of hunting at the villa

An organic microcosm: the structure of the villa

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

The senses tell the massage room

The senses tell the Bi-Apsed room

The prestige of the dominus is revealed through the wall frescoes