Darius III

Darius III

A detail of Darius III and his panicked troops and horses as they retreat from the attack of Alexander the Great and his troops.  Note the frightened look on the face of Darius and his troops.  In the lower left is a fallen horse.  Below Darius, one of his soldiers offers him a horse—the large wheel of his war chariot is visible behind the horse.  Behind Darius, his chariot driver, with a whip, urges the horses on.

The ground is littered, from left to right with a scabbard, a dagger, and a broken spear.

This image is of the right side of the large mosaic showing the battle of Issus where, in 333 BC, Alexander defeated the Persian ruler Darius III.


This mosaic was found in the second reception hall, tablinum, in the House of the Faun at Pompeii.  This mosaic has almost one million tesserae.  It measures 8 ft 11 in (2.72 m) x 16 ft 10 in (5.13 m).  It depicts the battle between Alexander the Great and the Persia rules, Darius III, in 333 BC at the site of Issus.