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| Rare Byzantine mosaic that depicts ancient streets and buildings in Egypt restored |
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An employee of the Israeli Antiquities Authority works on September 29, 2015 on a rare 1,500-year old mosaic that depicts ancient streets and buildings in Egypt and served as the floor of a church dating to the Byzantine period, as it's unveiled to the public at the location where it was found, in the industrial park at southern Israeli city of Qiryat Gat. The mosaic was removed from Qiryat Gat for conservation and was returned to its permanent location in the industrial park several weeks ago. AFP PHOTO / GIL COHEN-MAGEN.
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QIRYAT GAT (AFP).- A rare Byzantine-era floor mosaic discovered in Israel that depicts streets and buildings on a "city map" of a place in Egypt will be presented to the public Thursday after having been restored.
The mosaic of about 3.5 metres (11.4 feet) by 3.5 metres served as the floor of a church that no longer exists, the Israel Antiquities Authority said Tuesday.
"The appearance of buildings on mosaic floors is a rare phenomenon in Israel," the authority said.
"The buildings are arranged along a main colonnaded street of a city, in a sort of ancient map. A Greek inscription preserved alongside one of the buildings... indicates that the place which is depicted is the settlement Chortaso, in Egypt."
It said Christian tradition holds that the Hebrew prophet Habakkuk was buried in Chortaso, and the 1,500-year-old mosaic might refer to the origin of the church’s congregation.
The mosaic was discovered two years ago in an industrial zone in the southern city of Qiryat Gat.
“The artist utilised tesserae (tiles) of seventeen different colours in preparing the mosaic," the authority said. "The investment in the raw materials and their quality are the best ever discovered in Israel”.
© 1994-2015 Agence France-Presse
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