Section of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse Floor

Section of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse Floor

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This elegantly simple floral carpet belonged to a floor identified by a Greek inscription as part of the restoration in 537/38 of a public bath, probably occasioned by the great earthquake of 526. Antioch was a major administrative, commercial, and military center for the Empire, as well as a leading administrative center for the Christian church.

Medieval Art and The Cloisters

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse FloorSection of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse FloorSection of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse FloorSection of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse FloorSection of a Marble Mosaic Bathhouse Floor

The Museum's collection of medieval and Byzantine art is among the most comprehensive in the world. Displayed in both The Met Fifth Avenue and in the Museum's branch in northern Manhattan, The Met Cloisters, the collection encompasses the art of the Mediterranean and Europe from the fall of Rome in the fourth century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. It also includes pre-medieval European works of art created during the Bronze Age and early Iron Age.