Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label mosaic

The Market Gate of Miletus

The Market Gate of Miletus at the Pergamon Museum was rebuilt around 1925-1929 from hundreds of tons of fragments excavated in the ancient city of Miletus and shipped to Berlin by German archaeologists. The original gate dates back to the 2 nd century AD and was at the northern entrance to the southern agora or market. It was destroyed by an earthquake in the 10 th or 11 th centuries and suffered damages during World War II. On each side of the center door are statues, one of which is believed to be that of Hadrian (with a vanquished slave). The columns supporting the gate are Corinthian in style and the gate itself was originally constructed from marble. However, this reconstructed gate now consists of brick, cement, steel and the fragments from the excavation. On the floor in front of the gate is a mosaic taken from a private home in Miletus . It depicts Orpheus with his lyre. According to classical Greek mythology, Orpheus could charm all living things with h

Milan - Taking a Second Look

The Duomo of Milan boasts over 2000 statues of saints and one of Napoleon, ( I read this in my Eyewitness Top 10 Italian Lakes guide book) adorning its façade as well as innumerable reliefs. In a rush to enter the church, I had not spent any time until recently to discover the beautiful carvings and the stories they tell. Sunday at the Piazza del Duomo is always a good day to see the children feed and chase the pigeons. On this particularly warm day, the crowd was out in full force and trying to get a gelato meant waiting in a very long line. I took shelter in the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele II where I found a flash mob dancing to the tune, YMCA, by the Village People. It was fun to watch them try to go through the trademark motions of the famous group of the 70s. It made me smile. The iconic glass dome of the Galleria is quite famous as are the tony shops like Vuitton and Prada that rent space here. But there are other interesting things to check out