Fayum-portrait of a man

Since time immemorial, the oasis of Fayum has been a fertile area in Egypt. A number of times, it knew a period of prosperity, in connection with the irrigation systems that were constructed there. Each time, these fell into decline in the course of time. At the beginning of our era the area surrounding the freshwater lake saw a new period in which it flourished, lasting till the end of the 3rd century.
In the burial fields around the oasis of Fayuma total of around 750 portraits were found, painted on wooden panels, featuring a large variety of men, women and children. In view of their individual facial features it seems very likely that they were portrayed from life. The paint was applied on the panel by mixing hot wax with pigments, causing the paint to burn into the wood, producing a semitransparant effect. Through the centuries the colours have retained their natural brightness and intensity.
It seems plausible that the portraits had a place in the houses of the rich townsmen at first. After the demise of the person portrayed the panel was then taken from the wall, sawn to measure and attached to the mummy’s head. The style of these Fayum portraits does not have anything in common any longer with the well-known Egyptian style. They are no longer idealized, ageless portraits, but realistic renderings of real persons.