Excavated: 1913 (GdS 1913, 61 (February 3-8); NSc 1913, 133 with 134 fig. 12; Vaglieri); 1970 (Pohl 1987, trench d).
Mosaic: SO IV, 80 nr. 121, tav. 180 (top).
Inscription: ---.
Date: 190-200 AD (SO IV); 200-210 AD (Clarke).
Meas. of tesserae: 0.015 (SO IV).

Photos and drawings:

Front room and back room (ms)

Front room and back room (dga)

Front room and back room (kh; 2012)

Front room and back room (gh)

Front room and back room (gh2)

Statio 48 + statio 47 (centre + right) (gh2)

Depiction (right) (NSc; also NADIS inv. nr. 634)

Depiction (top) (SO IV)

Depiction (kh; 2016)

Depiction (right ship) (kh; 2012)

Depiction (right ship) (kh; 2016)

Depiction (left ship) (kh; 2012)

Depiction (left ship) (kh; 2016)

Mosaic

The floor of the rear part of the back room has not been preserved. However, on NADIS inv. nr. 644 is a depiction in the centre of the room, on the south side. A dolphin is swimming to the right and approaching two grain measures next to each other. Both rest on three feet. The left one is slender and higher than the right one, which is square. Below this scene was apparently a north-south running black mosaic band, of which only the north part had been preserved. It touches the north wall. It divides the back room in two halves of more or less equal size. In the south part of the front part of the back room is a patch of white tesserae, with a black band - four tesserae wide - separating it from statio 48.

The floor of the west part of the front room has been preserved, containing a large depiction. It is surrounded on three sides by a wide, black frame: 28 tesserae on the north side, 28 on the south side, while the west side is not complete. Today the west band does not seem to reach the south one, but it does on the figure in the Notizie degli Scavi. The north and south bands have small, white patches. The northern band continues on the area of statio 46. The southern band is not on the area of statio 48. The figure in the Notizie degli Scavi also shows a band on the east side.

No text has been preserved.

In the frame we see two ships with raised sails: the left one going to the right, the right one to the left. On the prow of the right ship an apotropaic eye is depicted. A few horizontal lines indicate the sea. A few lines below and to the right of the right ship might represent a small sea-creature (a branch according to Becatti). To the right of the same ship, set against the black band, is a tiny object (see especially the figure in the Notizie degli Scavi; Finelli speaks of "segni a modo di scherzo").

Becatti
Ships. Due navi affrontate: quella di destra è rostrata con occhio apotropaico disegnato in bianco a prua, acrostolio a voluta, poppa ricurva con i due timoni e grande acrostolio ricurvo dalla cui estremità parte un'asta obliqua verso l'interno della nave; forse vi si agganciavano tende per un riparo del cassero per il timoniere. L'albero maestro, retto dalle sartie, ha l'acato appeso al pennone retto dai sospensorî, e la vela è tesa verso poppa dalle scotte. A prua è l'albero obliquo di bompresso con vela quadra minore appesa al pennone, tesa indietro dalle briglie. L'altra nave è ricurva a prua e a poppa, con i due timoni, l'albero maestro con l'acato gonfio e teso indietro, l'albero obliquo di bompresso con il dolone. Le vele di ambedue i navi sono espresse con il reticolato bianco dei ferzi, delle bende e degli imbrogli. Linee parallele simboleggiano il mare e alla estremità destra è un ramoscello orizzontale stilizzato.

Masonry

The back wall of the back room is of opus latericium. The north wall is of opus vittatum mixtum A (four layers preserved). There is no south wall. However, the plans of Vaglieri and Gismondi do show a south wall, and on NADIS inv. nr. 644 and the model a south wall can be seen in the west half of the back room. On the NADIS plan a secondary wall or bench can be seen in the back room, set against the north part of the back wall and against the west part of the north wall. A bench is seen here on the model. It is to the west of the black mosaic band that divides the back room in two halves.

Interpretation

The absence of a text should be noted.