الجم
In 1985, David Parrish, an art history professor, proposed 200 AD as the date of the mosaic, a date that coincides with the early Severan dynasty. In a comparison of the military equipment of the two Samnites in the Zliten mosaic with the warriors in the mosaic of Bad Kreuznach (Germany), dated c. 250 AD, Parrish emphasizes their similarities. He performed a similar comparison between the duels of "retiarius" and "secutor" in the Zliten mosaic and those of the mosaic of Nennig in Germany, dated c. 240-250 AD. Additionally, Parrish concludes that the mosaic of the El Djem amphitheatre, dated c. 200 AD, has particularly evident links to the Zliten mosaic in terms of the realistic rendering of space on white background, and the absence of shadows and isolated plots of land. This methodology is criticized by some scholars, including Roman art historian Katherine Dunbabin, for relying on overly broad stylistic parallels between the works.