8Gladiator Mosaic, Nennig, Germany

This extraordinarily well-preserved Roman mosaic dates back to around AD 201-300. It was situated in the atrium (reception hall) of a sprawling villa in Nennig, by the river Moselle where Romans settled over 2,000 years ago.

Its geometric style depicts an organist and horn player and various gladiator and hunting contests – there’s a javelin thrower with a panther, a tiger versus a wild mule, a lion and his keeper, three fighters versus a bear, two fighters versus each other and three fighters versus each other. This well-preserved mosaic was only rediscovered by chance in 1852.

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