Material: mosaic (stone or glass pieces embedded in plaster)

Size: unknown

 

First, take a minute or two to look closely at the images above. Write down your reaction to this object--what details do you notice? Why did you pick this object for your response paper? Make notes on things that you notice about it. Also, write down any questions you have about it--what kinds of things would you want to know about this object? Remember the questions we ask in class. You don't need to have answers for these questions yet, but keep them in your notes.

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Once you have some questions written down, try to answer them by reading the information I've provided below about this object and its context.​

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What do we know about this object?​

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This mosaic floor comes from a synagogue located near the Sea of Galilee in what is today the country of Israel. It is near the ancient city of Tiberias, and is thus called the Hammat Tiberias synagogue.

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The mosaic floors from the main prayer hall have not survived completely intact. The first image shows you most of the floor, so you can see how the various images fit together. It also shows a wall that was built over the floor at a later time, and which destroyed part of the mosaic floor. 

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The floor has three panels. The upper panel (images 2-3) shows an ark or Torah shrine holding the scrolls of the Torah (hidden behind doors). On either side are various Jewish symbols: the seven-branched menorah, the shofar horn, an incense pan (used to hold incense in the Temple in Jerusalem), and the etrog/lulav symbols of the Sukkot holiday which I talked about during the lecture on Jewish art.

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The middle panel shows a central figure--the Greek sun god Helios (or Roman sun god Sol)--surrounded by the twelve signs of the Zodiac. Each is labeled in Hebrew. In the four corners are four figures representing the four seasons, each one labeled with a Hebrew month that represents that season.

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The lower panel has two lions flanking an elaborate inscription in ancient Greek and Aramaic which lists the names of donors who gave money for the construction of the synagogue.

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Keep in mind that when this mosaic floor was constructed, the Temple in Jerusalem had been destroyed for about 300 years. Jewish people were mostly forbidden from entering Jerusalem. The synagogue became the center of faith and worship. At the same time, these Jewish worshippers lived in a world which was culturally mixed: Jewish, Greek, and Roman. This is perhaps reflected in the choice to depict a pagan god surrounded by zodiac signs and the four seasons--traditionally Greco-Roman symbols. And yet many early Jewish synagogues include zodiac symbolism. There are different theories to explain this symbolism:

• A connection to the calendar: the sun god is flanked by a crescent moon and stars (symbolizing day and night); the zodiac signs represent the twelve months; and the four seasons of course represent the seasons of the year. Why do you think this might be significant to Jewish worshippers?

• The second Jewish commandment specifies that Jews will not make any "graven images". Usually this is taken to mean that Jews should not depict God in art, but what about other human figures? Maybe it was seen as more permissible to show pagan deities, whose imagery was merely symbolic (Jewish people did not believe these deities had any real power)? Jewish worshippers at the synagogue might have believed that God was the source of all things (sun, light, time, seasons, etc) but since they could not depict Him, instead they borrowed imagery from the Greco-Roman world.

• What do you think? And what do you make of the lions at the bottom? Lions have popped up a lot in the artwork of different cultures, often symbolizing power. What do you think they mean here?

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Unfortunately in 2012 this mosaic floor was badly vandalized. Officials at the time declared some of the damage irreversible. The perpetrators left spray-painted messages in Hebrew, and it is believed that they were ultra-Orthodox Jews who believe that archaeological excavation disturbs the tombs of the dead and should therefore be stopped.

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Some things to consider in your response paper:​

• What was your response to this object? What drew your eye? You are encouraged to use first person (I/me) in your response paper. I want to know what you think.

• Consider the artistic details of this object carefully. What kinds of decisions did the artist make when they were creating this piece, and why? You might think about choices such as the colors used, the placement of different symbols, and the general composition of the floor (where each element is placed in relation to other elements).

• Which parts of this are deeply Jewish in symbolism/meaning? Which parts of this artwork reflect the Greco-Roman cultural context in which these people lived? What does all of this tell you about what it was like to live here, and be Jewish here, in the 4th century CE? 

• Imagine the worshippers gathering here regularly for services. What do you think this imagery meant to them, particularly since the synagogue was the center of their religious life (they could not go back to the long-destroyed Temple in Jerusalem)? Make sure to discuss all three panels.