Dying Rider and Horse

Dying Rider and Horse

A detail of a rider whose horse that has fallen in the Battle of Issus (333 BC).  Note that its rider has a spear through him!

This image is about in the lower middle 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.