Untitled

258
resembles the man with the flute in room
L (figs. XII, 8-9).
An important stylistic indication is the representations
of the vine leaves and grapes. The medallions
of the inhabited scrolls mosaics in the
Monastery and the synagogue are filled with
leaves and grapes, although these are schematic.
Details of the inhabited scroll design such as the
vine branch medallions, grape clusters, and vine
leaves are similar in the synagogue and room L
in their shape and colour; vine leaves are represented
in two colours, half the leaf light brown and
the other half black, creating a distinctive form
(pl. XII.5a,b). See especially the leaf design with
the vertical central rib cut across by two horizontal
lines; compare the leaf above the ram in the
lower left medallion of the synagogue and the
leaves inside the medallions of room L; this type
of leaf has no equal in any of the other inhabited
scroll examples. The vine leaves are placed in
all directions. Interestingly, in both mosaics the
round medallions all end in a vine leaf.
The bunches of grapes are similar in shape and
the variety of the number of grapes in a bunch;
some are irregular and lit from above. The grapes
are similar in size and shape, usually round; a
slight difference is an outline in brown or red in
the synagogue, while in Room L the grapes have
a dark outline and the flesh is pink or red and
some have a white dot or a cross in the centre
(pl. XII.5a,b). The round grapes with the crosses
in the centre in Room L resemble also the grapes
in the eastern part inhabited scroll mosaic in the
El Hammam funerary chamber (fig. VI-14, and
see below).
The spaces among the medallions in both the
synagogue and room L are filled with birds and
beasts; this is unique to these two inhabited mosaic
pavements (only at Hazor-Ashdod do four birds
fill the space between the two first rows( figs. VI-
2,VI-10, VI-13,).
Human figures (figs. XII-8,9) in the House of Leontis,
the Monastery Hall A and Room L bear
a resemblance to each other. The renditions of
the faces, especially the eyes and hair, are similar:
the face and eyes of the Nile representation in a
fixed gaze in the House of Leontis is similar to
the faces of the Sun and Moon in Monastery hall
A (fig. XII-8a-c). The hair and beard of the Nile
representation in the House of Leontis is similar
to the hairstyle of the figures of the months in
chapter twelve
Monastery hall A. His chest, arm, and posture
are similar to the black figure leading a giraffe
in room L (fig. XII-8a-d).
The chained Odysseus in the House of Leontis
is similar to the figures of the months in the Monastery
Hall A and to the figures in the medallions
of room L (fig. XII-8e-g).
The posture of the arms of figures is similar
in the rowing figure in the upper panel mosaic
of the House of Leontis and the flute player and
grape-picker in the two medallions of room L
(fig. XII-9a,b).
The face, hair, and head angle of the Siren
playing the flute in the House of Leontis mosaic
is similar to the month of October and the figure
representing the moon in the centre circle of the
Monastery Hall A mosaic (fig. XII-9c,d).
Animals (figs. XII-10,11) The general execution
of the animals is alike in all these mosaics, with a
broad outline of the body, stripes for details, and
the eyes rendered similarly in all the beasts.
The deer in Monastery hall A and the deer
depicted between the bear and elephant in the
synagogue (fig. XII-10a) are similar. The posture
and style of the hare hunted by a fox in the synagogue
mosaic frame is similar to the hare eating
grapes in room L (fig. XII-10b). The bear on
the synagogue pavement is similar in execution
but different in posture to a bear wounded by
an arrow in Monastery hall A octagon (fig. XII-
10c).
The dog in the synagogue frame and the dog
inside the octagon in Monastery hall A are similarly
depicted (fig. XII-10d).
A resemblance is evident in posture and style
between the bull of the synagogue medallion, the
buffalo in the House of Leontis, and the goat
and leopard in Monastery room L (fig. XII-11a-c);
akin in style are the ram of the synagogue and the
donkey in room L (fig. XII-11d,e). Similarity is
noted in the posture of the ram in the synagogue
scroll, the lion in the outer panel of the synagogue,
and the leopard between the medallions in Monastery
Room L (fig. XII-11f,g).
Birds (fig. XII-12) are quite similar in execution
and posture in all mosaics:
The birds with a ribbon around their necks
that fill the central panel in the House of Leontis
are comparable to the birds in the central line of
medallions of the Monastery Chapel G, although
the ribbons of the birds in the House of Leontis