Pictures photos & images of Roman Geometric mosaic floors and wall decorations. The History of Roman Geometric Mosaic Designs. The first Roman mosaic floors before the 1st century AD used a technique known as crsutae floors which consisted of fragments of marble randomly set into mortar and flattened. From about the 1st century AD the small shapes of marble known as tesserae were used to make the first true Roman opus tesselatum floors. Initially Roman mosaic floors used black marble tesserae to make simple patterns against a white tesserae background. Simple designs with shapes of figures and animals were made surrounded by simple borders. By the end of the second century AD Roman mosaic designs had started to use complex geometric designs that were used to border narrative scenes. Roman mosaicists took the geometric designs to great heights of complexity which demonstrates their deep understanding of mathematics. So complex and intriguing did these geometric design become, by the 3rd century AD many mosaicists reduced and narrative scenes to a small panel in the middle of the mosaic or did away with it all together. The complex Roman geometric shapes played on visual illusions such as cubes that appeared to be three dimensional. A popular design was the Gordian knot that appeared to be impossible to make or undo. Endless variations of intricate designs exist in Roman geometric mosaic designs, and they became so popular that they can be found in every part of the ancient Roman Empire.

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