Animals in Ancient Art

This section of Ancient Art will display the individual types of animal displayed in the Art of the different Ancient Societies.

Bear

Roman mosaic of bears fighting other animals in the arena. Bardo Museum.
Roman Art.

1. Mosaic of a bear from the House of the Bear, Pompeii.
2. Mosaic of a bear’s head, 4th c. AD, Villa Romana del Casale, Piazza Armerina, Sicily.
3. Mosaic of a bear fighting a gladiator, c. 576 – 578 AD. Byzantine church of Kissifim.
4. Mosaic of a bear and tree, 4th c. AD, from the Villa Fortunatus, Zaragoza.
5. Mosaic of a bear, 5th c. AD, from the Hall of Phila, Daphne, Antioch. Baltimore Museum of Art.
6. Mosaic of a bear, Bulla Regia, Tunisia.
7. Bear attacking venators. Nennig Roman Villa.
8. Mosaic of bear devouring its prey. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Boar

Roman Art.

1. Relief of a hunting wild boar with a hunting dog, 3rd c. AD.
2. Mosaic of a man hunting a boar, 4th c. AD, from a Roman villa near Merida.
3. Mosaic of a boar. St-Romain-en-Gal, Provence.
4. Mosaic of a boar. Bardo Museum.
5. Bronze statue of a boar. Uffizi Gallery.
6. Bronze boar from Venice.
7. Relief of the Calydonian Boar Hunt. Ashmolean Museum.
8. Marble sarcophagus of the Calydonian Boar Hunt. Palazzo dei Conservatori, Rome.
9. Roman mosaic of bears fighting other animals in the arena. Bardo Museum.
10. Mosaic of a boar confronting a hunting dog. Carthage, 5th-6th c. AD. British Museum.
11. Mosaic of a boar and hunting dog, 3rd c. AD. Bardo Museum.
Greek Art.

1. Herakles, Eurystheus and the Erymanthian Boar. Side A from a black-figured amphora, c. 525 BC. Etruria.
2. Relief of the Calydonian Boar. Delphi.
3. Boar’s head rhyton, c. 340-330 BC. Toledo Museum of Art.
4. Black-figure hydria of a boar and other animals. Athens Archaeological Museum of Ceramics.
5. Boar pottery head. Martin von Wagner Museum, Germany.
6. Corinthian oil jug with boars and sphinxes, c. 620 BC. Staatliche Antikensammlungen.
7. Corinthian jug with animal frieze and boars, c. 580 BC. Staatliche Antikensammlungen.
8. Rhodian ceramic shallow dish depicting an boar, late 7th c. BC. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Bull

1. Bull amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.

Camel

1. Mosaic of boys riding on a camel. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Cat

Roman mosaic of a cat and a cockerel. House of the Faun, Pompeii. National Archaeological Museum, Naples.
Roman Art.

1. Mosaic of a cat stalking a bird bath, from Pompeii. National Archaeological Museum, Naples.
2. Mosaic of a cat catching a chicken. Vatican Museum.
3. Mosaic of a cat, from Pompeii. National Archaeological Museum, Naples.
Egyptian Art.

1. The Gayer-Anderson cat. British Museum.
2. Fresco of a cat eating a fish under a chair, Tomb of Nakht, Thebes.
3. Sarcophagus of Prince Thutmose’s cat, Ta-Miu. Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
4. Cat statue. Louvre.
5. Faience cat figurine, c. 1981−1802 BC. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
6. Case for animal mummy surmounted by a cat. Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Other Art.

1. Parthian rhyton terminating in the forepart of a wild cat, 1st c. BC. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Dog

Cave Canem dog mosaic. House of the Tragic Poet, Pompeii.
1. Dog mosaic. House of Pacquius Proculus, Pompeii.
2. Dog mosaic. Museum of Sousse, Tunisia.
3. Mosaic of a dog chasing a rabbit. Chazen Museum of Art, Wisconsin.
4. Mosaic of a chained dog. Marsala, Sicily.
5. Mosaic of a boar confronting a hunting dog. Carthage, 5th-6th c. AD. British Museum.
6. Detail of a hunting dog on an Orpheus mosaic. Pergamon Museum.
7. Mosaic of a dog, 4th c. AD. Archaeological Museum of Catalonia.
8. Mosaic of a hunting dog and boar, 3rd c. AD. Bardo Museum.
9. Mosaic of a boy and his puppy. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Donkey

Roman mosaic of a child feeding a donkey, 5th c. AD. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Elephant

Roman elephant mosaic from the House of the Laberii, Uthina, 4th c. AD. Bardo Museum.
1. Mosaic of an elephant fighting a bull in the arena. Museo Pia-Clementino, Rome.
2. Detail of a mosaic depicting an elephant being loaded onto a ship, 3rd-4th c. AD, from Veii. Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe, Germany.
3. Detail of a mosaic depciting an elephant and other animals. Volubilis, Morocco.
4. Mosaic of an elephant and lion fighting, 6th c. AD. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.
5. Elephant amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
6. Mosaic of an elephant. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Giraffe

Medallion of a giraffe from the aisle of the Byzantine church, Petra, 5th-6th c. AD.
1. Mosaic fragment of a man leading a giraffe, 5th c. AD. Art Institute of Chicago.
2. Giraffe amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
3. Medallion of a giraffe from the aisle of the Byzantine church, Petra, 5th-6th c. AD.
4. Mosaic of a man leading a giraffe, 6th c. AD. Monastery of Our Lady, Beit She’an.
5. Mosaic of a man leading a giraffe. Baptistry of Moses, Mount Nebo, Jordan.

Hippopotamus

Horse

1. Mosaic of shepherds with their horses and goats. Great Palace Mosaic Museum.

Leopard

1. Leopard attacking a gazelle on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
2. Venator mortally wounds leopard. Nennig Roman Villa.
3. Leopards on the central panel of the Lod mosaic, c. 300 AD.
4. osaic of a lion attacking a leopard. National Archaeological Museum, Naples.

Lion

Roman mosaic of a lion attacking a leopard. National Archaeological Museum, Naples.
1. Lions amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
2. Mosaic of a lion being led by his keeper. Nennig Roman Villa.
3. Mosaic of a lion. Bardo Museum.
4. Mosaic of a man on a camel leading a lion. Vatican Museum.
5. Mosaic of a lion. Archaeological Museum, Seville.
6. Mosaic of a lion. Brooklyn Museum.
7. Mosaic of a lion attacking a wild ass, c. 150 AD. Getty Villa.
8. Detail of a lion eating a water buffalo from the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
9. Mosaic of a lion attacking an ibex.

Ostrich

Mosaic of an ostrich being loaded onto a ship, 3rd-4th c. AD. Villa Romana del Casale.
1. Ostriches being killed on the Zliten mosaic.
2. Mosaic of a man leading an ostrich. Baptistry of Moses, Mount Nebo, Jordan.
3. Mosaic of an ostrich being attacked by a leopard. National Museum, Damascus.
4. Medallion of an ostrich from the aisle of the Byzantine church, Petra, 5th-6th c. AD.
5. Ostriches among other animals. Sousse Museum, Tunisia.
6. An ostrich being attacked by a bear. Bardo Museum.
7. Ostriches in the arena. Bardo Museum.

Rhinoceros

Rhinoceros being captured, 3rd c. AD. Villa Romana del Casale.
1. Rhinoceros amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
2. Rhinoceros on the Nilotic Mosaic from Palestrina.
3. Terracotta lamp of a rhinoceros tossing a large cat, 1st c. AD. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Snake

Mosaic of a cobra. House of the Faun, Pompeii.
1. Evil eye mosaic with snake. Hatay Archaeological Museum, Turkey.
2. Mosaic of an eagle attacking a snake, 6th c. AD. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.
3. Detail of a shrine from a Roman Villa, Ephesus, 1st c. BC.
4. Remains of a pillar from the Asclepium, Pergamon, with a snake.
5. Statue of Asclepius with a snake. Epidaurus.
6. Fresco of a pig sacrifice with large snakes below. House of the Centenary, Pompeii.
7. Fresco of Bacchus and Mt. Vesuvius with a snake. House of the Centenary, Pompeii.
8. Fresco of a snake slithering up a tree. House of the Orchard, Pompeii.
9. Fresco of a snake on a Lararium. House of the Vettii, Pompeii.
1. Detail of a snake on the Kuduru Tablet, c. 1000 BC, given to a king of Babylon. Moussaieff Collection.

Tiger

Cupid riding a tiger. House of the Faun, Pompeii.
1. Tiger amonst other animals on the central panel of the Lod Mosaic, c. 300 AD.
2. Opus sectile panel of a tiger attacking a calf, 4th c. AD. Basilica of Junius Bassus, Rome.
3. Tiger attacking a wild ass. Nenning Roman Villa.
4. Tiger and her cubs. Cleveland Museum of Art.
5. Tiger with the head of a wild ass, 3rd c. AD. National Archaeological Museum, Taranto.
6. Triumph of Bacchus, with tigers drawing his chariot. Sousse Museum, Tunisia.
7. Infant Bacchus riding a tiger. El Djem, Tunisia,
8. Tigers pulling BAcchus’ chariot. Carthage, Tunisia.
9. Cupid taunting a tiger, 3rd c. AD. Villa of Hermes, Budapest.
10. Tiger in the arena. Great Palace Mosaic Museum, Istanbul.

Wolf

Zebra

1. Man leading a zebra. Haleplibahçe Mosaics Museum, Turkey.