Altıntepe Kazısı 2003

Late Antique basilica paved with opus tessellatum mosaics. Above the mosaic pavement later burials have been excavated. The mosaic consists of geometric, floral and figural motifs. Figures mainly consist of animals and hunting scenes depicted in rectangular panels. The inconsistencies between the mosaic pavement and the architecture of the basilica suggest that the mosaics probably belong to an earlier stucture which was later converted into a basilica. According to stylistic criteria, the mosaics are attributed to the end of 5th - beginning of 6th cent. A.D. Remains of tesserae show that the arches and abutments were also decorated with mosaics. Among the fragments that could be identified are some latin characters and the depiction of a face.