Ask Margaret
You are not alone in wondering about the
Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg’s five
mosaics. I’ve received several questions
about their restoration, future, and why
two of them were stored underground.
In 1964, the new Museum of Fine Arts
in St. Petersburg’s first director, Rexford
Stead, purchased five mosaic fragments
from Princeton University in order to
enhance and round out the museum’s
already extensive antiquities collection that
was being assembled for its 1965 opening.
The historic mosaics, which date from
as early as 100-300 A.D., were excavated
by Princeton archeologists between 1932
and 1939. The large, heavy historic pieces
were discovered in and around the site
of the once thriving Greco-Roman trade
center of Antioch in what is now Turkey,
which was an integral part of the western
caravan trade routes between Asia and the
Mediterranean as well as an important
center of both Christianity and Hellenistic
Judaism.
The artifacts’ intricate geometric
patterns and figural images indicate
that they would have been pieces from
the decorative concrete flooring of five
of the city’s opulent villas, which had
colorful descriptive names, such as the
House of the Evil Eye and the House of
the Drinking Corner. The floor mosaics
provide insight into the residences’ long
gone surrounding wall decorations.
The more than 300 mosaics that were
retrieved by the Princeton group ended
up in museums, universities and other
collections throughout the world.
The five ancient mosaic sections that
the MFA is fortunate enough to have in its
possession weigh up to 400 pounds and
measure up to 8 feet-by-6 feet. Retrieving
by Margaret Word Burnside
How is the restoration
progressing of the large,
ancient decorated slabs
that the Museum of Fine
Arts in St. Petersburg
was restoring a few
months ago?
K.S., Tarpon Springs
the two from beneath the earth and even
moving or handling any of them has been
a tedious, risky undertaking.
Two of the MFA’s mosaic treasures
have been on display over the years, one
inside the museum and the other, which
depicts a person’s head and shoulders,
140 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE | JULY/AUGUST 2018
was incorporated into the museum’s
outdoor Membership Garden’s fountain.
The third one was stored under the stage
in the MFA’s special events Marley Room.
The remaining two were buried in 1989
near the waterfront in the museum’s east
lawn near the Sculpture Garden. They
remained there until March of this year,
when they were painstakingly removed
during a two-week procedure in order
to be cleaned, conserved and studied in
the temporary on-site outdoor laboratory
before being put on display.
The answer to the queries about why
two of the mosaics were buried beneath
the ground reflects the recognition of
the importance of their preservation.
During the 1980s, many thought that
artifacts that had remained underground
for extended periods of time might be
harmed by exposure to air, especially
air containing pollutants that were
previously nonexistent. You might say
that the museum was hedging its bets
to protect its artifacts by separating its
five mosaic fragments into three different
environments. This is after the ancient
pieces of art had already been exposed to
a variety of air conditions for fifty or more
years since their original excavation. Plus,
unlike the mosaics’ original arid location,
both their new outdoor garden and east
lawn burial spots were prone to dampness.
Fortunately, the MFA’s mosaics survived
their various means of storage. They are
being repaired and studied under the
watchful eyes and steady hands of Chief
Conservator Rosa Lowinger and her team
from Rosa Lowinger and Associates in
the MFA’s temporary outdoor laboratory.
This restoration project is especially
important in today’s world, as ISIS and
If you have any questions about the
people, places or things in the Tampa
Bay area, please send them to
“Ask Margaret” at Tampa Bay Magazine,
2531 Landmark Drive, Suite 101,
Clearwater, Florida 33761.
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