Late-Roman mosaics found during work on Thessaloniki’s metro will be extracted, cleaned and be exhibited at the same station they were excavated in, the Central Archaeological Council (CAC) said on Wednesday.
The mosaics were found in the south entrance of the Agia Sofia station and are believed to be part of a nearly 315 square meter urban villa dated to the first half of the 4th century AD, experts said.
Decoration of the mosaic floors consists of geometric patterns, while one includes a central medallion, possibly depicting Aphrodite, head of the Thessaloniki Ephorate of Antiquities Polyxeni Adam-Veleni, told CAC.
The new findings lay south of the renowned Byzantine highway of “decumanus maximus,” where more mosaics connected to the ones found now have been discovered in previous years.
Constantine the Great had initially settled in a palace in Thessaloniki and thought of turning the city into the capital of the Roman Empire before going on to found Constantinople, Adam-Veleni said.
(Source: AMNA)
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