The mosaic covers an area of and dates to the third century
CE, or to somewhere around the year 300, given that debris covering the mosaic contained datable remains from both the third and fourth centuries. The patterns depict birds, fish, animals and plants, in addition to providing detailed images of Roman-era ships. Nothing is written on the mosaic; inscriptions are common in Roman-era mosaics from public buildings, so it is assumed that the mosaic was most likely part of a private villa. Unusual for a mosaic floor of this age, the mosaic is in near-perfect condition. The exception is damage to one of the two ships depicted, done when an
Ottoman-era cesspit was dug into the mosaic. Despite the damage, students of maritime history have been able to glean a great deal of information from the images. The ships are of the
navis oneraria type, Roman merchant ships typically displacing 80-150 tons, used to carry such commodities as
garum and grain from Egypt to Rome. Archaeologists Elie Haddad and Miriam Avissar suggest that the absence of human figures, rare in Roman-era mosaics, may indicate that the mosaic was commissioned by a Jew who observed the Biblical prohibition of graven images. They further suggest that it may have been commissioned as a kind of
ex-voto, a thank offering in fulfillment of a vow made upon being delivered from grave danger, in this case, shipwreck. Other maritime historians demur, but Haddad and Avissar point to what appear to be torn ropes, a broken mast and damaged steering oars, together with the central placement of the damaged ship in the mosaic and the fact that it is apparently about to be swallowed by a giant fish as an artists representation of disaster at sea. ==See also==