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1998: 249-254). The decorated ark is in the centre
of the square panel forming the focal point of the
scene. It is a three-dimensional chest standing
on four legs; it is open and the lid is folded back.
A dove can be seen inside the ark and the tail
end of another dove (?) protrudes from the side
opening (Budde 1969: figs. 26, 30). The Greek
inscription KIBWTOC NWEP on the inner
open lid of the ark means ‘The ark of Noah the
r[edeemer]’ or ‘The r[edeemed] ark of Noah’
(Budde 1969: 41-42; Avi-Yonah 1981b: 186; but
see Buschhausen [1972: 67-68] who asserts that
the Greek Ρ means 100, that is, 100 years between
the building of the ark and the flood). The word
KIBWTOC means box or chest and is the word
used in the Septuagint for Noah’s Ark as well as
for the Ark of the Covenant. In Hebrew the word
for the ark of Noah is הבית.
The ark is decorated with three coloured
rectangles similar to standard decorations of
Torah arks appearing on the mosaic pavements
of Hammath-Tiberias, Susiya, Beth "Alpha and
others (figs. II-9-12) (Hachlili 1976: 40-50; 1988:
272-278, figs. IX 21; 22, pls. 102-105; 2000:
154-5, figs. 11: 4,5, 12: 1-4; but see Buschhausen’s
suggestion [1972: 65] that the ark is a type
of columbarium).
The animals are arrayed in two wide rows
around them so they can be viewed from all
sides. Two rows of animals surround the ark, an
inner row consisting of birds and an outer row
of mammals. The birds are identified as crane,
cock, hen, peacock, dove, nightingale, and stork;
some are depicted in flight, and some stand on
a simple base line (Budde 1969: figs. 27, 28, 34,
36, 38, 39, 42). The mammals stand on a thicker
line, which may indicate landscape. The animals
also have an added line in darker colours between
or under their feet. The mammals appear to be
arranged, for example, the savage beasts such as
the bear, lion, and panther or leopard are placed
at the corners, one of which is damaged (Budde
1969: figs. 26, 27, 29, 32); the domesticated
animals such as ox, deer, donkey, gazelle, and
camel are placed in between the corners (Budde
1969: figs. 30, 35, 40-42; Avi-Yonah 1981: 186).
In this row one bird, a crane, is also depicted
among the mammals. Surprisingly, the animals
are not depicted in pairs: only a single example of
each animal species appears. Furthermore, Noah
and his family are also missing from the scene,
although they do appear in the later mosaic.
The animals’ movement is stereotypically awkward
and stiff, body bulk is excessive and their
chapter four
eyes are large and emphasized; they are portrayed
isolated on a white background. Differences in
bird size attest to the probability that the depictions
were from observations in nature, as well
as copied from some model books. The scene is
comparable to the Antioch tradition of the Martyrion
of Seleucia (Kitzinger 1965: 345, 348-9;
Buschhausen 1972: 61). Dunbabin (1978: 230-
31) suggests that the rows of animals at the Misis
mosaic accord with a favourite theme in Christian
churches, namely bands of animals moving peacefully.
This is interpreted as the Animal Paradise, a
peaceful assembly of animals prophesied by Isaiah
(see below).
The style of the pavement emphasizes the ark,
which is three-dimensional but lacks perspective
or shadow, though there is some influence of
a Hellenistic illusionary description. Kitzinger
(1976a: 65) claims that the pavement with Noah’s
Ark surrounded by animals is a figure carpet,
although it ‘retains a certain vestige emblema’.
Noah’s Ark on the Later Mosaic Pavement at Misis
The other Noah’s Ark scene on the repaired later
part of the mosaic is viewed from the opposite
direction to the older mosaic (Budde 1969: 54-55,
Fig. 50, 55, 113-114).
This mosaic has two parts (fig. IV-9): one shows
a large figure holding a vessel in the left hand. An
animal (panther?), a bird, and an upside-down
bird cage are between this figure and a much
smaller figure on the left. A red box-like object
appears under the first figure. The other part
of the mosaic shows three animals, one openmouthed
without ears. Budde (1969: 54) contends
that they are a lion and a panther, and
that the third animal looking back on the right
has an elephant’s trunk. A bird is placed above
this animal, and remains of a building are beside
it. Budde suggests that this scene shows Noah and
his two sons Shem and Japhet offering thanks
after their salvation. He compares the primitive,
rustic style of the Misis mosaic to the Beth
"Alpha mosaic style. Neither is of high artistic
standard and both were executed by local artists.
The later pavement at Misis is especially crude
compared with the high quality of the earlier
mosaics.
The date of the early mosaic pavement is disputed.
Budde (1960: 116, 123) first suggested the
end of the 4th or early 5th century, the period
of Theodore, Mopsuhestia’s famous bishop (392-
428), but in his later book (Budde 1969: 34) he