Great Palace Mosaics Museum

In the Arasta Market of the Blue Mosque Complex, The Great Palace Mosaics Museums debuted in 1953 as a division of the Istanbul Archaeology Museums. The mosaics that are currently in the collection were discovered during archeological excavations on the northeastern portion of the cloister in the Eastern Roman Grand Palace in 1935. The mosaics, which date from 450 to 550 AD, feature images from mythology, nature, and everyday life. Among the 150 human and animal figures and 90 distinct themes, the most notable mosaics depict a lizard eating a griffon, a mare nursing her colt, a man milking a goat, a child feeding his donkey, and a young girl carrying a jug.