I was sent in 1996
to undertake
a simple trial excavation to...
because the municipality of Lod
wanted to widen the street,
and the first thing I found
was a white corner
of a mosaic floor
and then we found
a tail of a tiger.
And we saw immediately that
this is of a marvelous quality.
After two months,
I had the whole mosaic floor.
(soft music playing)
We are working on the
conservation of the Lod Mosaic.
At the beginning, we didn't want
to move the mosaic
from the place,
but when we decide
to build there a museum,
and to excavate more,
was more wise
to take out the mosaic
to have the space to dig
and to build properly.
In this time,
we are proceeding to the lifting
of the mosaic.
Now, first of all,
come the careful cleaning.
The second is the
very precise documentation
and the decision
how to cut the mosaic.
To cut the mosaic, we dare
to disturb the composition,
because the lifting
is a very tricky process
and is a key moment
of the conservation.
Not many mosaics
have this quality
and this level of integrity,
and the mosaic is not touched.
(crowd murmuring)
In this moment,
we are proceeding
of the gluing of the mosaic
with cotton fabric.
After that come the cutting
of the mosaic from the bedding.
We are dividing the mosaic
in the minimal possible
fragments.
The detachment
is a very important part
of the conservation process
and needs a lot of professional
skills, experience, and power.
From this moment
depends everything--
the future conservation
and the future success
of the restoration.
We have in our hand
all the history of building
of this mosaic
and discovered step by step
how the mosaic was done.
Who did the mosaic?
We have the footprints.
The people walking on the mosaic
to lay on the tessera.
With these footprints,
we have the connection in time
between the people
working on this mosaic
and us working again
to conserve the mosaic
and to transfer the mosaic
in the future.
The mosaic will be transferred
to wooden platforms
and to transport the fragments
to our laboratories in Jerusalem
to further conservation,
construction of new supports.
The conservation process
will take two years.
The building of the museum,
a little bit more.
The first place to display
the mosaic
will be the Metropolitan Museum,
New York.
(lively traditional music
playing)
(music ends)
