Eastern Roman Mosaic Portrait of Ktisis, Goddess of Generosity, Civic-Investment, and Development holding a measuring instrument equating to a Roman foot (4th Century CE) – Kourion, Cyprus [2048×1356]
by ParkingGlittering211
Eastern Roman Mosaic Portrait of Ktisis, Goddess of Generosity, Civic-Investment, and Development holding a measuring instrument equating to a Roman foot (4th Century CE) – Kourion, Cyprus [2048×1356]
by ParkingGlittering211
2 Comments
The detail they got with tiny tiles like that still blows my mind.
Ktisis isn’t exactly a ‘goddess’, she’s a late antiquity personification of civic generosity in endowing buildings and the like. That’s why this imagery shows up in Christian contexts (holding a ruler).
Similar to how the cornucopia is used to symbolize “abundance” or “prosperity”, or the scythe “death”.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/469960