Private architecture testifies to the receptiont of new models popular throughout the Mediterranean area. A monumental and spectacular public space matches with a personal and enclosed private space. Houses in the Achradina and Neapolis districts featured a peristyle design with entrances from the main or a secondary street through a corridor. The rooms drew light and air from the central courtyards - often with a central cistern. They were paved with terracotta tiles, sometimes alternated with opus signinum with white or coloured marble tesserae arranged in patterns (such as grids, meanders of swastikas, squares) commonly found at Morgantina, Catania and Mount Ietas. Walls were decorated with painted plaster and stucco frames.