This house belonged to a distinguished Roman family, one of the many that lived in Asturica Augusta. Its construction used noble materials, and over time, the house underwent various renovations. Its location, very close to the city’s forum, also indicates that its owners were among the highest social classes of the time. The construction of the domus has been dated to the late 1st century AD.
The house was built with its different rooms arranged around a peristyle or central courtyard surrounded by columns. Various types of flooring have been preserved in the house, depending on the function of each room. A simple pavement known as opus signinum—a mortar made by compacting a mixture of lime, sand, water, and crushed brick—was used for service rooms and storage areas. A more elaborate pavement made with rectangular bricks laid in a herringbone pattern, called opus spicatum, was used for more important rooms. Additionally, luxurious mosaic flooring adorned the reception hall where the homeowners hosted social gatherings. Some remains of pictorial decoration are also preserved on the baseboards of the walls. Furthermore, the outlet of the house’s sewer system can be observed, which, like other buildings, was connected to the main drainage network.
The domus also had private baths, where all areas of a thermal bath—cold room (frigidarium), warm room (tepidarium), and hot room (caldarium)—have been identified. In the frigidarium, small remnants of marble slab flooring are still preserved. The presence of these thermal baths and such materials within the house reinforces the hypothesis that its owners belonged to the upper echelons of society at that time.
A magnificent mosaic is preserved in the reception hall, known as the oecus. This mosaic, created between the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries AD, depicts the myth of Orpheus and the animals. Orpheus was a Thracian singer who, due to his extraordinary musical talent, was given a lyre by the god Apollo. When Orpheus played it, he could tame wild beasts. In the mosaic, Orpheus would be positioned at the center of the main image playing his lyre, surrounded by eight medallions featuring wild animals in fierce poses. Among them is an image of a bear standing on its hind legs—the only part preserved today. The outer scenes are an allegory of autumn, showing various bird species pecking at grapes on trellises. For this reason, this mosaic is known as “The Mosaic of the Bear and the Birds.” In the four corners of the scene are craters or vases from which two olive branches extend. The mosaic is of exceptional quality and was created using a technique known as opus vermiculatum, characterized by very small tesserae that provide great detail and realism to its preserved vegetal and animal decorations.
Curiosities:
Due to its location, only one-third of the house has been excavated; parts of the domus remain beneath today’s Redemptorist Fathers’ convent.
The myth of Orpheus and the Animals was very popular in Greek and Roman culture. The poet Ovid recounts it in Book X of Metamorphoses. In addition to Astorga’s example, numerous representations of this myth have been found on mosaics across Spain in places such as La Alberca (Murcia), Santa Marta de los Barros (Badajoz), Zaragoza, Mérida, and “El Pesquero” Roman villa (Badajoz), as well as in Itálica (Seville). Examples have also been found in Portugal in locations like Arneiro or Arnal and Martim Gil. This indicates that this myth enjoyed great popularity in Hispania during the Late Empire period.
