The agonistic mosaic in the Villa of Lucius Verus and the Capitolia of Rome

The 3rd-c. interventions in the Villa of Lucius Verus on the Via Cassia included the laying of a black-and-white mosaic in the irregular space 32 in Sector D, which forms a passage or vestibule between exedra 24/25 to the north and the small baths (41–48) to the south (fig. 1). The mosaic shows a series of figures and small groups; most are athletes of various sorts, but they also include musicians, comic and tragic actors, and a prize-table …