12024-01-15T17:53:48-05:00A Memento Mori Mosaic (Mid 1st Century BC, Archeological Museum of Naples), contributed by Olga Kerameos (2023)4plain2024-01-15T17:56:50-05:00The mosaic depicts the allegory of death which levels distinctions between human beings. At the top of the composition there is a plumb-bob with its plumb-line whose axis is death in the form of a skull; below, there is a butterfly, the soul, on a wheel, symbolizing Fortune; between the arms of the plumb-bob are the symbols of poverty on the right and the symbols of wealth on the left.
This mosaic, along with the above text, truly struck with me after my visit to this museum. Seeing a skull, which I thought was a contemporary symbol for death, used to convey such a philosophical view on loss made me realize what a universal experience loss is.
