Colorful Houses

Candelabra Painting

Styles of decorative paintings are not identical: specialists have established a succession of four styles, found at Pompeii and Herculaneum between the 2nd century BC and the 1st century AD. In the provinces, painting followed the general trend of this evolution while developing its own original characteristics, such as the candelabra. The candelabra was a metallic furnishing, composed of a base topped by a branch and a small plate designed to support oil lamps. This motif was very popular among Gallic painters. They used it systematically to separate the large colored panels decorating the walls.

Wader Painting

This wall, exceptionally well conserved along the height of a meter, comes from a peristyle (colonnaded garden) from a house in Vienne. At the base, on the plinth, tufts of greenery evoking dewy vegetation alternate with wading birds. The six preserved birds are painted in white with a high degree of finesse, with touches of pink color on their wings, blue on the tails, and violet on the feet. Birds were widespread in mural painting, especially in the gardens of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Associated with swamp plants, they contributed to the construction of this aquatic landscape that Romans enjoyed having in their gardens. Vienne, exploratory dig of Nymphéas, 1977. Courtesy of the city of Vienne.

Crater and Birds

Until the middle of the 20th century, mosaic-setting was a perilous undertaking that required considerable means, and was not always successful. This explains why, in the past, mosaic-setting was often limited to settings at the most decorated portions of the mosaic, favoring figured scenes to the detriment of geometric motifs. These three panels were uncovered in 1863 on a pavement discovered in Vienne. At the center of the square, a large vase (crater) is flanked by four semicircles. Only two were set: they represent a partridge picking at a bunch of grapes and a wading bird (a swan?) eating a serpent. Courtesy of the city of Vienne.

Orpheus Taming the Animals

A legendary poet of Greece, Orpheus is famous for his descent into the Underworld, where he went to look for his beloved Eurydice. That episode is not represented here, but rather the one of Orpheus taming the animals by the powerful charm of his music. It was said that listening to it made the rivers stop running and the trees and rocks spill tears. This theme figures on some 50 mosaics known primarily in the western part of the Roman world. Four were discovered in Vienne. Courtesy of the city of Vienne.

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