2026EUROMED - Traditional Mediterranean Mosaics - Special Folder

The Mosaic of the Ocean God
The mosaic of the Ocean God, identified in the city of Faro between Infante D. Henrique Street and Ventura Coelho Street in 1926, was only uncovered in 1976; it is one of the most outstanding examples of the Roman presence in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. Dating from the 2nd/ 3rd centuries AD, it displays a central medallion depicting the god Oceanus, traditionally portrayed with wavy hair, a beard and marine imagery. This medallion was originally framed by the personifications of the four winds; however, only Boreas and Zephyrus remain today, the other figures were destroyed in 1926.