View source for Mosaic

A '''mosaic''' is a picture or pattern created with many small bits of [[glass]], [[stone]], [[ceramic]]s or (in rare cases) [[gemstone]].  In [[ancient]] [[Greece]] mosaics were created by using natural stones, often from riverbeds, but by the [[Roman]] period they were created out of pre-cut cubes of glass or stone known as ''tesserae''.

Mosaics were often used to decorate floors, walls, and the insides of domes.  [[Constantinople]] was famous for its many notable mosaics, and St.Peter's [[Basilica]] in [[Rome]] is decorated in many mosaics, including what appear to be the paintings behind altars. Mosaics can be fixed to other flat objects such as a table but can also be applied to three dimensional objects such as vases. [[Mortar]] is used to secure the mosaic material to the surface and [[grout]] is used to fill the gaps between the pieces.

[[category:artefact (medieval)]]
[[category:arts]]