Villa Romana del Casale: photographs of the Late Imperial mosaics at Piazza Armerina, Sicily.

All photos taken by me, 16 October 2022.

Piled up on a peak of the Erean Mountains of central Sicily, and bounded by forests of eucalyptus, Piazza Armerina is called la città delle cento chiese for its enormous number of churches.

Geometric mosaics, figurative mosaics, frescoes. The villa gives a good of the way one space segued to the next.

Since excavations began in 1950 it has also been celebrated for a vast Late Imperial residence below the town described by UNESCO as home to “the finest mosaics in situ anywhere in the Roman world”. Excavations of the “Villa Romana del Casale” were begun by Gino Vinicio Gentili following indications from local residents.