On loan to The Met The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.

Mosaic of the House of Citharist of Pompeii

Roman

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 162

The head of the Gorgon Medusa appears in the center of this mosaic floor panel, framed by a scale pattern of black-and-white bands with kantharoi or drinking cups in the corners. Feared for her ability to turn the living into stone, Medusa’s visage protected household members from harm, and is frequently found in Roman mosaics of this period. This example once adorned a small room in one of the most prominent residences in Pompeii, the House of the Citharist. It remained in place for more than a century even as the richly decorated house was renovated, expanded, and refurbished. The building was buried in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

Mosaic of the House of Citharist of Pompeii, Mosaic, Roman

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.