ASPROM | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Association for the Study and Preservation of Roman Mosaics |
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News archive |
Current news |
November 2016: Dr David J. Smith We are sad to report that the founder of ASPROM, Dr David Smith, died on 24 November. He was the first editor of Mosaic, from 1979 to 1984, and was also a founder member of AIEMA. Among his many contributions to Roman archaeology, perhaps the most significant was the identification of different regional groupings ('schools') in Romano-British mosaics. | |
May 2016: New book on animals in Romano-British mosaics, by Patricia Witts ASPROM member Pat Witts has published the results of many years of research in A Mosaic Menagerie: Creatures of Land, Sea and Sky in Romano-British Mosaics (BAR British Series B625). Publication details (pdf, 2 MB) | |
February 2016: Restoration of mosaics in the Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem It was reported in the press recently that work on the twelfth-century wall mosaics has been completed, revealing their brilliant colours for the first time in decades. A later phase of the restoration project will uncover the mosaic floor of the original fourth-century basilica built by the Emperor Constantine. Visit the restoration project website | |
January 2016: News from the International Committee for the Conservation of Mosaics (ICCM) The ICCM has become a non-profit Foundation based in Italy. It also has a new website: www.iccm-mosaics.org. Read about the changes here (pdf, 200 K) | |
February 2015: New book on the Roman mosaics of Switzerland Sophie Delbarre-Bärtschi's new book, Les mosaïques romaines en Suisse (Antiqua 53, 2014), updates von Gonzenbach's 1961 catalogue of Roman mosaics in Switzerland, and examines their techniques, materials, design, iconography and contexts. Publication details and order form (pdf, 2.5 MB) | |
December 2014: New AIEMA President Professor Anne-Marie Guimier-Sorbets has been elected as the President of AIEMA. Professor Guimier-Sorbets' research encompasses all aspects of Greek and Roman mosaics in the eastern Mediterranean, including important contributions to the study of mosaic iconography, techniques and materials, and the use of computer databases. | |
October 2014: New grants for museums or sites with mosaics As well as our grants for individual researchers, ASPROM is now offering grants of up to £500 to support UK museums or sites with the costs of individual or ongoing projects relating to the presentation, conservation or study of ancient mosaics. Full details and application form | |
November 2013: New volume of the Corpus of Roman Mosaics of Portugal The third volume of the Corpus dos mosaicos romanos de Portugal has been published, covering the eastern Algarve. Publication details and order form (pdf, 290 K) | |
Spring 2013: AIEMA Newsletter News from the national branches of AIEMA, details of recent and forthcoming conferences on mosaics, and information about new books. Download the newsletter (pdf file, 3 MB) | |
June 2012: Two new AIEMA conference volumes published The proceedings of two recent AIEMA conferences are now available the tenth conference, held at Conimbriga in 2005, and the eleventh, held at Bursa in 2009. Details of the tenth conference proceedings (pdf file, 225 K) Details and contents of the eleventh conference proceedings (pdf file, 1.2 MB) | |
Spring 2012: AIEMA Newsletter News from the national branches of AIEMA, details of recent and forthcoming conferences on mosaics, and information about new books. Download the newsletter (pdf file, 3.3 MB) | |
July 2011: Buy a print of the Woodchester Mosaic! David Neal is selling signed, limited edition prints of his painting of the Woodchester mosaic, which took him 18 months to complete (as described in his account of creating the illustrations for the Corpus). Funds raised from the prints will go towards the cost of preserving the archive of paintings and drawings from the Corpus, so that it will be available to researchers in the future. To buy a print, please send a cheque for £12.50, made payable to the Society of Antiquaries, to Dr D.S. Neal, Tylers, Little Brickhill, Milton Keynes MK17 9NP. | |
July 2011: Volume in memory of Fr Michele Piccirillo On 15 August, Archaeopress will publish a volume of essays in memory of Fr Michele Piccirillo, one of the world's leading authorities on the late Roman and Byzantine mosaics of Palestine and Jordan, who died in 2008. The volume contains 12 articles on mosaics in the Middle East, in English, French, Italian and Arabic (with translated summaries), and over 200 illustrations, mostly in colour. See the Table of Contents (pdf file, 12 MB) | |
Spring 2011: AIEMA Newsletter News from the national branches of AIEMA, notices of forthcoming conferences on mosaics, and reviews of new books. Download the newsletter (pdf file, 1.2 MB) | |
February 2011: Petition to save ancient Carthage The site of ancient Carthage (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and the historic town of Sidi Bou Said are threatened by illegal development. Please support the efforts of Tunisian archaeologists to stop the destruction by signing this petition. See the petition. | |
December 2010: The Roman Mosaics of Britain Volume 4: Western Britain Stephen Cosh and David Neal's corpus of all the Roman mosaics in Britain is complete at last! The fourth and final volume, covering Wales and the western counties of England, will be published soon. This region is one of the richest in Britain in economic as well as architectural and artistic terms. The volume includes the towns of Cirencester, Gloucester, Caerwent and Wroxeter, and the wealthy villas of the Cotswolds. Like the three previous volumes, the book is extensively illustrated in colour with the authors' own tessera-by-tessera paintings. It can be ordered from Oxbow Books. |
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July 2010: Mosaics uncovered at Chedworth Roman Villa Several of the corridor mosaics at Chedworth are being re-excavated and conserved this summer as part of work to construct a new cover building over the west wing of the villa. Read more on the excavation blog and follow the project on the Chedworth Roman Villa blog. |
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June 2010: Please sign the Hinton St Mary petition! ASPROM has launched a petition to ask the British Museum to display whole of the Hinton St Mary mosaic again, preferably on the floor, or to consider loaning it to a suitable museum in Dorset, its county of origin. Since 1997 only the roundel with the head of Christ has been on display, mounted on the wall. We believe that as the mosaic possibly contains the only known representation of Christ in an ancient pavement, it is of unique importance, not just in Britain but in the context of the Roman Empire as a whole, and merits being displayed in its entirety. Read the full text of the petition. |
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Spring 2010: AIEMA Newsletter News from the Council and General Assembly of AIEMA, reports from the national branches, reports on recent conferences on mosaics, and notices of new books. Download the newsletter (pdf file, 623 K) | |
March 2009: The Roman Mosaics of Britain Volume 3: South-East Britain The third part of David Neal and Stephen Cosh's definitive corpus of Roman mosaics in Britain is now published. It covers some of the best-known Roman sites in the country, including the towns of Colchester, Silchester, London and Verulamium, and the villas and palaces at Brading, Bignor and Fishbourne. The book consists of two volumes, lavishly illustrated with the authors' own paintings, reproductions of historic engravings, photographs and plans showing the context of the mosaics. It is available from Oxbow Books, along with Volumes 1 and 2, which cover northern and south-west Britain; the fourth and final volume of the series is almost complete and should be published next year. |
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October 2008: Father Michele Piccirillo We are sad to report that Fr Piccirillo died on 26 October. He was one of the world's leading authorities on late Roman and Byzantine mosaics, and will be remembered especially for his work in excavating, publishing and conserving the mosaics of Jordan, Palestine and Syria. Read obituaries in The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph. |
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December 2006: Grants for the study of ancient mosaics ASPROM is now offering grants to members towards the costs of research and publication connected with the study of ancient mosaics. The grants are available to students and researchers at all levels. More information |
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January 2006: The Roman Mosaics of Britain Volume 2: South-West Britain The second volume of Stephen Cosh and David Neal's monumental corpus of Roman mosaics in Britain has appeared at last! The volume was launched at a meeting held by the Society of Antiquaries on 19 January. It describes 444 mosaics from about 120 sites in Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire, which are lavishly illustrated in colour, including the authors' distinctive paintings. The volume is available from Oxbow Books. |
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July 2005: Time Team's Big Roman Dig Channel 4's Time Team are running excavations and activities all over Britain to learn more about life in Roman Britain. They have returned to the villa at Dinnington in Somerset, first investigated in 2002, and ASPROM's Vice-Chairman David Neal has been called in to look at new fragments of mosaic, which are of outstanding quality. Read more on the Time Team website. |
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May 2005: Mosaics in Roman Britain: Stories in Stone, by Patricia Witts Patt Witts' new book, published by Tempus, looks at figured mosaics from Roman Britain, explaining the scenes of myth and everyday life that they represent, and trying to understand what their owners were trying to convey. The book is lavishly illustrated and includes a gazetteer of sites and museums where mosaics can be seen. |
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April 2005: New book on Pompeian mosaics and paintings, by ASPROM Chairman Roger Ling The Insula of the Menander at Pompeii, Volume II: The Decorations, by Roger Ling and Lesley Ling, is the second of five volumes presenting a whole city block at Pompeii. The block contains the House of the Menander, one of the most lavishly decorated houses in Pompeii, as well as several smaller houses. The new volume publishes all the mosaics and paintings from the block in detail for the first time, with extensive discussion and analysis. Read about the book on the Oxford University Press website |
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Newsletter no. 44, March 2004 | |
Newsletter no. 43, September 2003 | |