The “Unswept Room” (‘asarotos oikos’ in Greek), was the brainchild of Sosos, the best known mosaicist from the ancient world.
It’s a weird and wonderful idea: the intricate tessellated mosaic showed the detritus that might be left behind after a raucous aristocratic dinner party: crustacean shells, olives, chicken bones, fruits, leaves, nut shells, and even a nibbling mouse.
The original was described by delight by Pliny the Elder and most likely was situated in the Attalid palace in Pergamon. This is a Roman rendition (how faithful to the original is unclear), excavated on the Aventine Hill in Rome and now in the Vatican Museums. It was made for a triclinium (dining room) so that when couches were arranged in an open square, the trompe l’oeil unswept floor would have been beneath them, to amuse the guests.
