The third volume in the Hidden Treasures series launched in 2018 with the Farnese Cup examines another undoubted masterpiece: The Alexander Mosaic. It is certainly one of the great attractions for visitors who everyday throng the rooms of the National Archaeological Museum in Naples. The mosaic is made up of over one and a half million tesserae, arranged asymmetrically using the opus vermiculatum technique, which allows the figures to be outlined to make them stand out against the background. Luigi Spina gets his camera in close to the crush of men and animals to bring out all the stunning detail in the expressions, gestures, and poses that the viewer often overlooks when taking in the scene as a whole. Eyes wide open and alert, loose reins, flying whips, but also unwonted finery: sumptuous fabrics, precious ornaments, and elaborately coiffed manes. Essays by Valeria Sampaolo and Fausto Zevi close the book, placing the floor mosaic in its context and highlighting its extraordinary nature within the panorama of ancient art.

The Farnese Cup: the largest cameo hardstone cup to have survived from the ancient world. A treasured piece that travelled over centuries. A meticulously prepared publication illustrating the Farnese Cup in varying perspectives. A tour de force of a carver's skill and craftsmanship, the Farnese Cup is the largest cameo hardstone cup to have survived from the ancient world. Thought to be made in Hellenist Egypt sometime between 300 BC and 30 BC, the Cup was not an archaeological find but rather a treasured piece that travelled over centuries through many hands from Alexandria to Rome to Constantinople and back to Rome before joining the Farnese Collection now housed at the National Archeological Museum of Naples. The Cup, carved out of sardonyx agate, remains the subject of scholarly debate: what do the enigmatic figures in the inner scene mean? And the terrifying face of the Gorgon on the outside? Why was it made? And in what context? Whatever its inherent meaning, the piece itself is commanding, requiring a close-up view of each hand-carved detail, the balance and impact of the whole, and the subtle variations in the material itself. This book provides that close-up in a series of photographs and varying perspectives that pull back from the delicate infinitesimal cut to the magnificent, perfect whole. There is no better way - in fact no possible way - for the general reader or connoisseur to fully appreciate the Farnese Cup than through the pages of this meticulously prepared publication.