Reviews

Ancient Mosaics

Roger Ling (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998) 144 pp., $19.95

Mosaics of the Greek and Roman World

Katherine M.D. Dunbabin (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999) 357 pp., $135.95

In the last three decades, scholars have made enormous advances studying ancient Greek and Roman mosaics. We have begun to understand not only when, where and how most ancient mosaics were made, but also how they were viewed and used by the people who created them. Now much of the recent progress in mosaic studies has been summarized for the layperson in two new books by acknowledged world experts: Roger Ling’s Ancient Mosaics and Katherine M. Dunbabin’s Mosaics of the Greek and Roman World.

Clear, concise and easy to read, Ling’s slim paperback provides an excellent introduction to the field of mosaics. He gives a brief overview of basic mosaic techniques, examines the art form’s development in different historical and architectural contexts and provides a helpful glossary and bibliography of fundamental works.