Housed in a recently renovated Victorian building, The Caesar Hotel 4* is home to a unique collection of authentic Roman mosaics unearthed in Syria, displayed in the common areas of the hotel, including the lobby, restaurant and meeting room.
The collection of mosaics is complemented by original works, collages and lithographs by the Catalan artist Francesc Guitart, which were especially commissioned for the hotel.
Roman Mosaics
In Roman times, mosaics were considered to be a luxury item in wealthy households, a mark of distinction advertising the successful activities pursued by the lord of the house. The pieces on display date from the 2nd to 6th century AD, and present the polychromy of Syrian mosaics an iconography based on geometric themes developed in various shapes ranging from circles, squares and zigzag lines to plant and animal motifs.
One of the mosaics on show at the hotel exhibits an eagle, a crater vase and two deer, elements that in Roman times were seen as pagan symbols. When Christianity spread through Europe, these symbols took on the meanings given in the Eucharist, coming to represent strength and piety.
The collector
In addition to being a hotelier, Jordi Clos is an Egyptologist, collector and patron of the arts. He chairs the Clos Archaeological Foundation and the Egyptian Museum in Barcelona, containing the largest private collection of Egyptian art in Europe shown to the public. Clos has been financing archaeological excavations in Egypt for more than twenty years.
Jordi Clos
Derby Hotels Collection President
