Mummy Portrait
A realistic painting of a person's face, attached to a mummy in Roman Egypt.
What is it?
A mummy portrait is a painting on wood or linen that was placed over the face of a mummy in Roman Egypt. These portraits were made between about 50 BC and AD 300. They show the person as they looked in life, with detailed hairstyles, clothing, and jewelry. The child mummy portrait you saw is a good example. The portraits were painted using encaustic (wax) or tempera (water-based) paints. They are sometimes called "Fayum portraits" because many were found in the Fayum region.
Why it matters
Mummy portraits are some of the oldest surviving realistic portraits in the world. They give us a direct look at the faces of people from ancient times. They also show how Egyptian and Roman art mixed.
Where you've seen it
This list grows as you capture more mummy portraits.
