It is thought that the Great Palace of Constantinople was constructed during the reign of Justinian (527-565). The Great Palace Mosaic was the largest and most beautiful of its time (6th Century A.D.!) and was probably made by craftsmen gathered from all corners of the Byzantine Empire, guided by a master artist. One square meter of the floor used around 40,000 tesserae, making 80 million in the entire area! The mosaic was brought to light in fragmenta and sections which together make up only 1/70th of the original expanse.

The pictures describe open-air scenes: the life of herdsmen, the labour of peansants and the prowess of huntsmen. Scenes of children playing with wild beasts and grazing animals alternate with mythological motifs, animal fables and fabulous creatures from exotic countries. The leading themes of the mosaic are animals, hunting, games and myths but the surviving parts of the piece show there are over 90 different themes, populated by some 150 human and animal figures.