30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
For mosaics lovers of all levels, May 5, 2007
This review is from: Tunisian Mosaics: Treasures from Roman Africa (Conservation & Cultural Heritage) (Paperback)
The short version of this review is that if you have any interest at all in Roman mosaics, you don't have to be an archaeologist or art historian to enjoy this book, but if you are one of the above, this belongs in your library. The writing style is easy to understand and informative. The photos are excellent. Buy the book!
The long version is as follows: I've been learning about mosaics for less than two years and I am by no means an expert, but ancient Roman mosaics have become a passion so my knowledge is more than the average. When I heard that the Getty Villa in Malibu, California, was mounting an exhibit on Tunisian mosaics, I was excited. Before visiting the exhibit, I decided to read the two books published in conjunction with it. Not a catalog of the exhibit (I'll be reviewing that book, "Stories in Stone: Conserving Mosaics of Roman Africa," separately), "Tunisian Mosaics, Treasures from Roman Africa" is an overview of the artistry, history and preservation of the mosaics in that region.
As a visual person, I found the photographs in this book to be stunning--the sharpness, detail and color is excellent. With the exception of three floor plans and a vintage black and white photo, all the images are in gorgeous color (with many full-page plates) so you are able to fully appreciate the beauty of the mosaics. Also, the layout and graphic design of the book is very pleasing. One of the reasons I never hesitate to buy art books published by the Getty is their consistently high visual quality.
However, the book is not merely a feast for the eyes. As stated on the back cover of the book, the author, Aicha Ben Abed, is director of monuments and sites at the National Institute of Cultural Heritage, Tunisia, and is one of the world's leading authorities on the mosaics of Roman Africa. Although originally written in French (and translated by Sharon Grevet), the book is easy to read and you don't have to be an archaeologist to understand it.
Mosaics spread with the Roman Empire, and that included Africa Proconsularis, the area we now know as Tunisia. The chapter entitled "Ancient Tunisia" was interesting to me as I previously knew little about the history of the country, not realizing this was Carthage. The timeline running at the bottom of the pages in this chapter allowed me to keep track of events from 1110 BCE to the Proclamation of the Republic of Tunisia in 1957. Without understanding something of the history and sociology of an area, I don't feel it is possible to properly appreciate ancient mosaics, as they are so bound up in the context of their environment.
Because of this belief, the discussions, and especially the photos, in the chapter entitled "Mosaics in Their Original Settings" was of the most interest to me. Viewing mosaics at the museum, as they are hung on the wall, is one thing, but seeing them in their original architectural settings (if only in photographs) the way they were intended to be seen, is another experience entirely.
One chapter is devoted to the Bardo Museum which houses the world's largest collection of mosaics gathered from excavations all over Tunisia in the days when archaeologists, sadly, prized only figurative mosaics and lifted them from their surroundings with little thought to how they were destroying their significance.
Another chapter, "Mosaic Treasures Throughout Tunisia," showcases other Tunisian museums including the Sousse Museum, housing my favorite mosaic of the region, the head of the Titan Oceanus, and El Jem Museum, which exhibits the exquisite tableaux from the House of the Dionysian Procession.
The final (short) chapter is on a subject dear to my heart, "Preserving the Mosaic Heritage," which explains that after centuries of being considered a minor art, even an ignored one, mosaics are finally being taken seriously by art historians and archaeologists.
My library on mosaics is growing quite rapidly, but I believe this book is one I will be referring to often, if only to look at the splendid photos of the individual mosaics and their architectural sites.
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