Which Mosaic Houses Should You Look for on Delos?

The streets in the Theatre Quarter on Delos give away surprisingly little about the houses behind them. Ground-floor walls generally faced the lane with few openings. Once you understand the central courtyard, a plan of one of these houses begins to look much more like a home.

What was a peristyle, and which houses had one?

A peristyle was a courtyard surrounded by columns. Rooms opened off the courtyard, which brought light into the house and gave visitors a way to move between rooms. Only wealthy households could afford a colonnade like this. Compare the plans of the House of the Masks and the House of the Trident. Find the court first, then trace the rooms arranged around it.

Which mosaic gave the House of Dionysus its name?

The ground-floor mosaic showed a winged Dionysus riding a large cat with a garland of grapes around its neck. The name picks out that striking image. The House of the Masks also yielded a mosaic showing Dionysus riding a spotted cat. If the subjects look familiar in photographs, check the house named in the caption before matching the image to your stop.

What can a floor tell you about the room?

Look at how a patterned border frames a picture or a central geometric design. The arrangement could create the effect of a carpet in a reception room. Elsewhere, builders used much coarser fragments of pottery in workspaces or pieces of marble in open courts. Those differences help you imagine where a host entertained guests and where everyday work took place.