Narbonne - House of the Genius

The House of the Genius in Narbo Martius (Narbonne) (part of the Le Clos de la Lombarde complex) dates back to the first century BCE and was expanded with an additional storey in the third century CE. It has a surface of 975 square meters, and is comparable to the houses in Pompeii, which also have an atrium and a peristyle. The living quarters were open to a garden that was surrounded by porticos, while the atrium and an entrance hall had a semi-public function. In the triclinium (dining room), the owner of the house received his guests.

Many rooms in this luxurious, large mansion were covered with fine mosaics of black and white stones. The walls were decorated with equally splendid frescos. Among these were representations of a winged Victoria, of a genius who is carrying a cornucopia and pooring a libation, and of an Apollo with a laurel wreath (the protective deity of the emperor Augustus). In the garden was a large pool, inhabited by fish.

The house was in the fourth century overbuilt by a basilica.