Hare mosaic, 4th century

This mosaic was discovered in 1971 during the excavation of a Roman town house in Beeches Road, Cirencester. It dates to the mid 4th century, when the Corinium mosaic school was flourishing.

The hare design is unique as a centrepiece in Roman Britain and would almost certainly have been chosen by the owner of the mosaic. The surrounding design uses standard mosaic motifs which would probably have been prefabricated in panels within the workshop.

The tesserae used to construct mosaics were usually made from locally available materials. Limestones, greensands, sandstones, Purbeck marble, Kimmeridge shale, pot and tile were all used in Britain and each gave regional products a distinctive colour. Glass was rarely used in Britain, but in this mosaic clear glass tesserae can be seen on the hare's back.

In the later 4th century a channelled hypocaust (under floor heating system) was built on top of the mosaic - some traces of soot can still be seen.



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