Celebrating Nature's Glory in Art

Celebrating Nature's Glory in Art. . Land was the major source of wealth in the Roman world, and art in the houses of the rich celebrated the source of their income., This replica mosaic, sponsored by the Chester Civic Trust, commemorates Roman gardens and includes scenes from mosaic across the Empire., The four full-length figures, based on an original mosaic from North Africa, depict the Four Seasons in an anticlockwise sequence, starting with spring at the front left. Between them, the scenes of a man milking a goat and the labourer with a digging hoe are based on mosaics from the Great Palace in Constantinople (Istanbul); the lady sitting garden bench is based on a mosaic from Carthage, again in North Africa; and the apple picking scene and the men carrying a tray of manure come from Vienne in southern France. The encircling scroll is taken from a mosaic in the villa at Woodchester, Gloucestershine, and the central rosette from one at Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire., The size and appearance of Roman gardens depended on the wealth of their owners and on the regional climate. Most would have been devoted to vegetables, herbs and fruit for consumption at home or for sale in nearby towns or forts. Plants were also grown for their medicinal properties to attract bees, or to make garlands or perfume. Only the rich could afford large pleasure gardens as well as kitchen gardens. Primitive varieties of most of the plants in the Roman Gardens cold have been found across the Empire., The Romans introduced the cultivation of many new plants into Britain. After early popularity some became rare or disappeared altogether; others became established, including plum, pear, walnut, and mustard. More native wild plants also began to be eaten. Exotic foods were most commonly found in large towns and forts herbs; in particular are found at forts., "I saw an old man... who planted vegetables here and there among the bushes, and white lilies around them, and vervain, and slender poppies.... He was the first to gather roses in spring and fruit in autumn." , - Virgil Georgics (late 1st century BC), Book 4, lines 127-141