ETYM From Moses.
Decorated with small pieces of colored glass or stone fitted together; SYN. tessellated.
1. Assemblage décoratif de pierres colorées.
2. (Au figuré) Ensemble disparate. Une mosaďque de nations.
ETYM French mosaďque.
1. Design made of small pieces of colored stone or glass.
2. Any pattern resembling a mosaic.
3. Assembly of aerial photographs forming a composite picture.
4. Light-sensitive surface on a television camera tube.
5. Viral disease in solanaceous plants (tomatoes; potatoes; tobacco) resulting in mottling and often shriveling of the leaves.
Design or picture, usually for a floor, wall or vault, produced by setting small pieces of marble, glass, or other materials in a cement ground. The ancient Greeks were the first to use a form of mosaic (for example, the Macedonian royal palace at Pella). Mosaic was commonly used by the Romans for their baths and villas (for example Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli) and reached its highest development in the early Byzantine period (for example, San Vitale, Ravenna).
The art was revived during the 13th century, when it was used chiefly for the decoration of churches (for example, the Church of the Apostles, Thessaloníki).