During Mediaeval ages, in the 12th and 13th centuries, many marble workers created their pieces taking their marble from ancient Roman ruins, and composing the fragments in geometrical decorations. One of those groups were the Cosmati, who originated the cosmatesque style, and who were active in Rome and its surroundings. (11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... Jump to: navigation, search City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1290 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,546,807 almost...

Among the churches that were decorated in cosmatesque style, there are San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, San Saba, San Paolo fuori le Mura, Santa Maria in Aracoeli, and Santa Maria in Cosmedin. Outside Rome, Anagni and Ferentino have some remarkable cosmatesque works, while Cosmati built an innovative decoration in the church of Civita Castellana. This style was also exported in Europe, and the high altar of Westminster Abbey is decorated with a cosmatesque marble floor[1]. San Saba is a town located in San Saba County, Texas. ... St. ... View from the Cordonata. ... Santa Maria in Cosmedin is a church in Rome founded in the 6th century. ... Anagni, (Latin Anagnia) is an ancient town in Latium, Italy, in the hills east-southeast of Rome, famous for its connections with the papacy and for the picturesque monuments of its unspoiled historical center. ... Ferentino (Latin: Ferentinum) is a town and episcopal see in Italy, in the province of Frosinone, 65 km southeast of Rome. ... Civita Castellana (anc. ... Jump to: navigation, search The Abbeys western facade The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster, which is almost always referred to as Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ...

The style

This peculiar style of inlaid ornamental mosaic was introduced into the decorative art of Europe by a marble-worker named Laurentius, a native of Anagni. Laurentius acquired his craft from Greek masters and for a time followed their method of work, but early in his career, freeing himself from Byzantine traditions and influences, he worked along original lines and evolved a new style of decorative mosaic, vigorous in colour and design, which he invariably employed in conjunction with plain or sculptored marble surfaces, making it a decorative accessary to some architectural feature. The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ...

As a rule he used white or light-coloured marbles for his backgrounds; these he inlaid with squares, parallelograms, and circles of darker marble, porphyry, or serpentine, surrounding them with ribbons of mosaic composed of coloured and gold-glass tesseræ. These harlequinads he separated one from another with marble mouldings, carvings, and flat bands, and further enriched them with mosaic.

The works

His earliest recorded work was executed for a church at Fabieri in 1190, and the earliest existing example is to be seen in the church of Ara Coeli at Rome. It consists of an epistle and gospel ambo, a chair, screen, and pavement. In much of his work he was assisted by his son, Jacobus, who was not only a sculptor and mosaic-worker, but also an architect of ability, as witness the architectural alterations carried out by him in the cathedral of Civita Castellana, a foreshadowing of the Renaissance. This was a work in which other members of his family took part, and they were all followers of the craft for four generations. Those attaining eminence in their art are named in the following genealogical epitome: Laurentius (1140-1210); Jacobus (1165-1234); Luca (1221-1240); Jacobus (1213-1293); Deodatus (1225-1294); Johannes (1231-1303).

Reference

• Catholic Encyclopedia article on Cosmati Mosaic

This article incorporates text from the Catholic Encyclopedia, which is in the public domain. The Catholic Encyclopedia is an English-language encyclopedia published in 1913 by the Roman Catholic Church, designed to give authoritative information on the entire cycle of Catholic interests, action and doctrine. // History The writing of the encyclopedia began on January 11, 1905 under the supervision of five editors: Charles G... The Catholic Encyclopedia is an English-language encyclopedia published in 1913 by the Roman Catholic Church, designed to give authoritative information on the entire cycle of Catholic interests, action and doctrine. // History The writing of the encyclopedia began on January 11, 1905 under the supervision of five editors: Charles G... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...