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Floor Mosaic Depicting the Cities of Memphis and Alexandria

ca. 540

Not on view

This mosaic from a church floor in the affluent city of Gerasa (modern Jerash) depicts two major Egyptian cities identified in Greek as Alexandria (left) and Memphis (right), sites on the trade routes that made the Byzantine Empire’s southern provinces wealthy. The inscription identifies the donor as "my bishop . . . Anastasios" and describes the church as "adorned . . . with silver and beautifully colored stones." The motifs—cityscapes, trees, vase with vines, and inscription—were popular throughout the Byzantine Empire and transitioned into the arts of the emerging Islamic world.

Floor Mosaic Depicting the Cities of Memphis and Alexandria, Limestone in ivory, dark ocher, beige, light gray, dark gray, and shades of red — This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Floor Mosaic Depicting the Cities of Memphis and Alexandria

Date: ca. 540

Geography: Made in Jordan, excavated Church of Saints Peter & Paul, Gerasa

Medium: Limestone in ivory, dark ocher, beige, light gray, dark gray, and shades of red

Dimensions: 156 x 240 in. (396.3 x 609.6 cm)

Classification: Mosaics

Credit Line: Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Excavated by the Yale–British School Archaeological Expedition, 1928–29 (1932.1735)

The Met

Medieval Art and The Cloisters at The Met

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world, encompassing the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome to the beginning of the Renaissance.