The Boat Depicted in the Yakto Thalassa Mosaics: Is it a Dugout?

Abstract

Alexandria, Rome, and Constantinople were important cities during the Roman-Byzantine periods but quite little is known about the wealth of Antioch in the same periods. The rich and expansive life of Antioch in the 4th century AD is mostly known from the Letters and the Orations written by Libanius.The present paper will not cover all aspects of Antioch and its beautiful mosaics. The boat depicted in the Thalassa mosaic from Yakto Upper Complex and dated to the middle of the 5th century AD (the subject of this paper) may represent a unique depiction of a dugout. Such a vessel is rarely depicted in any arts and especially on mosaics.Dugouts are an earlier type of watercraft dating from Prehistoric times until the 21st century, and still in use all over the world. Representations of boats in any arts and especially on mosaics, as a simple method of transportation, carrying light cargoes, or the utensils for fishing, are also used as a symbol or apotropaic of the place where such scenes are depicted, as well as the welfare of the owner of the house.