Herring Run Mosaic

Sally Dean Mello
Installed 2022
Vitreous glass tile, smalti glass tile, ceramic, stone

The herring fish was a vital food source for the Wampanoag tribe, who also used it effectively as a crop fertilizer. By sharing this knowledge with the first European settlers, the Wampanoag saved them from starvation.

This mosaic was years in the making. “The idea for the mosaic began back in 2016!” says artist Sally Dean Mello, who designed the mosaic and spearheaded its creation. The original intent was for it to be installed in 2020, to coincide with the “Plymouth 400” celebration in 2020. The mosaic—like so many events in our lives—was delayed by the onset of COVID-19.

The mosaic is 23 feet long and is the handiwork of over 40  individuals from multiple South Shore towns, who volunteered their time to lay tile and turn a sketch into this colorful mural.