Inscriptions in the Late Antique private house : Some thoughts about their function and distribution

The article focuses on self-representations of patrons in private houses and the response of the viewer to the constructed self-image approached from the perspective of inscriptions in various kinds of media. It examines the various functions of the inscriptions in both wall paintings and mosaics and shows how inscriptions as a general phenomenon point to the financial power of the house owner. The article includes a chapter on the elaborate dedicatory inscriptions of mosaic pavements as well as a discussion of the inscriptions added to identify the representations of mythological and other figures.