Nile flora and fauna,Roman mosaic. Mosaics consist of small pieces of coloured glass or stone,used to form an image or pattern on a floor or wall. This mosaic depicts the flora and fauna found on the Nile River in Egypt. From left,the mosaic foreground shows a date palm,a mongoose,a cobra,a hippopotamus,a crocodile and two sacred ibises. In the background are six ducks. The smaller bird at left,perched on a lotus flower bud,is a shrike. This mosaic,from the House of the Faun,Pompeii,dates from the 2nd century BC,and is displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Naples,Italy |