The Getty Villa

I found three little snails at the entrance of the museum and it made my day. The delicately patterned markings on their shells match the villa’s repetitive architectural details, the texture of the aged marble, and the serenity in my eyes.

Fresco with a Woman and a Leopard

Roman AD 50-79

Plaster and Pigment

Cut from a larger composition on a wall of an unidentified building, this fresco depicts a half-draped woman offering a silver kantharos (wine cup) to a leopard. Both the vessel and the beast are associated with the wine god Bacchus, and this scene may have decorated the triclinium (dining room) of a well appointed home. Affluent Romans incorporated such frescos into their villas as part of their practice of otium - the leisurely pursuit of high culture and pleasant relaxation. Similar frescos were discovered at the Villa de Papiri.

I landed a quarter on top of the lily pads, may good fortune shine upon me.

January 4, 2023