Discovered in 1947 in Torre de Palma, near Monforte, in the Alto Alentejo, the Mosaic of the Muses revealed the existence of a vast Roman estate.
At the end of the third century and the beginning of the next, as well as being very wealthy, the owner was a cultured man with a high social status. For the decoration of his house, he probably hired North African mosaicists and painters who knew their art well and were up to date with the latest fashions, probably in Mérida, the capital of Lusitania. The mosaic that adorned the dining room is a veritable open book of Greco-Latin mythology.
Author: Janine Lancha
Publisher: Cromotipo Artes Gráficas, Lda.
