Page 129 - A Walk to Caesarea / Joseph Patrich

A Walk to Caesarea: A Historical-Archaeological Perspective 115

Located on the eastern side of the cardo is a colorful mosaic that decorated the Fig. 130
floor of a spacious rectangular hall. In it four tall grapevine trees are arranged along
the diagonals of the square bordering four triangles, and in each triangle a pair of The Byzantine governor’s
horned animals set head to head is depicted: ibex, gazelles, deer, and perhaps goats. precinct, plan of the vault
Between the vine trees, among their branches and on them, a few birds are also systems on the west and the
depicted (Fig. 129a–b). In the northern side of the hall stood two columns between ground floor on the east
two pilasters and beyond them a corridor with a mosaic floor. At the western end
of this corridor a private latrine can be seen. On a lower level, south of the hall, a
Greek mosaic inscription was found in a round medallion, asking for the help of
the One and Single God (eis theos) by a person named Eusebius, an accountant
(noumerarios) (Fig. 53, above p. 47). From this formulation and from the lack of a
cross in the inscription one may presume that he was a Samaritan. Also, from the
mention of an accountant in the architectural complex sprawling on the eastern
side of the cardo, there is reason to think that the government compound extended
there as well.

The long vaults on the west (Fig. 130) were intended to serve foremost as supports
for the structures on the second story. Initially, they were open on their western end,
so they could not be used as warehouses. Over the course of their existence it was
possible to identify in the different vaults traces of various activities. For a certain

Fountain Ante- Stair-
chamber well

Basin Skrinion

Vault 1 0 2 4 6 8 10 m
N
Vinescroll Vault 2 Vault Cardo
mosaic 54 Latrine
Vault 11 Western
Vault stoa
Vault 12 19
Vault 3 Alley
Vault Vault Vault Vault 8
Vault 5 67
4 Courtyard Vault Vault Fountain
10 9
Vault
13

Decumanus