The Domus of the Stone Carpets, located in the basement of the Church of St. Euphemia, is an 850-square-meter – or 9,000-square-feet – archaeological site that was unearthed beginning in 1993. It was part of a prestigious palace dating back to the sixth century AD, when Ravenna was the capital of the Western Roman Empire.
Many rooms were discovered inside: some for official purposes, others reserved only for family members or important guests, as well as corridors, areas that served as hallways between rooms, and courtyards from which light filtered. Unfortunately, neither the overall size of the palace nor its original floor plan could be traced because not all rooms were rediscovered, given the impossibility of expanding the excavations.
The domus belonged to a distinguished personage who certainly held a very important political role within the court. Archaeologists have deduced this from the fact that part of a major public street had been incorporated within the building, on which the entrance to the domus is likely to have been located. At that time, it was extremely rare for a private citizen to appropriate public property, a privilege that could only be granted by those who held political power.
The richness of the materials, the marbles, and especially the decorations, and in particular the wonderful mosaic floors, confirm the prestige of the owner.
Walking along the path starting from your left, clockwise, you can admire some of the best-preserved mosaics and all the rooms discovered to date.
We have created additional files for the two most important and best-preserved decorations which you will find along the walls.
The first, called the "mosaic of the good shepherd," is visible immediately to your left, at the beginning of the visit; the second you will find toward the end of your visit: it is the mosaic of the dance of the genii of the seasons, which was originally located in the larger room of the palace, where you now find a perfect copy of it.
An interesting fact: The room where you find the copy of the mosaic dedicated to the seasons on the floor was an imposing hall intended for lavish banquets. It currently measures 7 meters wide by 12 meters long – about 20 by 40 feet – but it has been determined that it was at least 20 meters or 65 feet long!
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