Image Details

Heron and Fenduck: A proud heron dips his long neck to feed from the cuplike flower of a lotus plant, startling a brightly colored fenduck nestled in a leaf. Above are bulrushes and a bush that may be an oleander in flower. All of the heron behind its left leg was restored, probably in the sixth century. A comparison of the old and new, especially of the color, size and finish of the tessarae and the natural grace of the legs, affords a deeper appreciation of the original artist’s skill. Note, for example, that the heron’s right leg was restored with a single row of tessarae, while its left leg is made of two rows of much smaller, more evenly cut stones.