Flora from the Seasons Mosaic, 2nd century

The Seasons Mosaic was discovered in Dyer Street, Cirencester, in 1849. It comes from the same Roman townhouse as the Hunting Dogs Mosaic, also on display at the Corinium Museum. The mosaic has been dated to the 2nd century AD on grounds of style.

Only three of the original four main roundels survive: Flora (spring), Ceres (summer) and Pomona (autumn). There are two other roundels which show scenes from Greek mythology. The first shows the metamorphosis of Actaeon, who was turned into a stag by the goddess Diana for spying on her while she was bathing, and was then attacked by his own hunting dogs (his blood is highlighted with small pieces of red glass). The second roundel shows Silenus, an attendant of Bacchus (or Dionysus in the Greek), in a typical pose. The mosaic also contains a Medusa mask and a dancing satyr (another follower of Dionysus).



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