Eikonistika psifidota ysteroklassikis kai ellinistikis periodou

The article examines the correlation between the floor mosaic iconography and architectural context. Since most of the floor mosaics of the late classical and hellenistic periods survived within the andron of rich houses, the article concentrates on the meaning of their mosaic decoration. In the classical period the andron, a room reserved for men and the entertainment of their guests, was decorated with themes concerning maleness, vigour, heroism (hunting scenes and scenes taken from mythology) and pleasure (dining and dionysiac scenes). In the hellenistic and roman period, this kind of correlation fades out gradually and the iconography of the floor mosaics decorating the andrones is enriched with representations of historical events and philosophers, copies of famous paintings and sculptures, as well as numerous other themes that indicated an owner of Hellenistic taste and education.