[1][2] The 9 m2 (97 sq ft) mosaic is elliptical in shape and depicts a woman’s head on a black background, surrounded by flowers and other floral elements.

The mosaic was created in the second half of 4th century BC in Durrës, then known as Epidamnos,[2][3] to serve as the decorative floor of a private and luxurious restroom.

[5] In 1982 the mosaic was carefully moved from Durrës and placed in the main hall of antiquities in the National Historical Museum at Tirana, where it can still be seen today.

According to the historian and archaeologist Moikom Zeqo, the woman represented in the mosaic is the same as one painted on archetypes of amphorae in Apulia and other parts of Southern Italy, with red figures of the Hellenistic era.

[1] However, the archaeologist Afrim Hoti[8] suggests that the portrait of the woman is probably the maiden Aura, a companion of the goddess Artemis in hunting.

The plastic effect of the mosaic’s female figure in its whole integrity, represents a work of highly developed artistic craftsmanship for the time.

It is characterized by a strong lyricism of forms, evident in the continuity of the curvaceous lines, spontaneously harmonic design, and the fluid distribution of the elements.

The female figure is surrounded by flowers of several kinds, such as hyacinth, lily, and bellflower, as well as other floral elements such as stalks, buds, and petals.

[1][2] The Mosaic was made using the opus vermiculatum technique, thus a light outline is drawn around the shapes using tesserae, which is contrasted by the dark black background.