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Material : Encaustic Painting on Wood
Width : 21 . 5 Height : 35
Found in : Hawara , Near Fayum Oasis (1888-1889)
Period : ROMAN PERIOD
Archeologist : W . M . F . PETRIE
Discovered in Hawara (near Fayoum Oasis) by W . M . F . Petrie (1888-1889) , this portrait of a woman dates back to the Roman Period (mid-1st century AD) , during the time of Emperor Flavians . A great corpus of portraits painted on wood known as the "Fayum portraits" was made during the Roman imperial era . The Roman taste had a particular interest in making portraits that stand for iconographic realism . Such a tendency became the most successful expression of the reciprocal penetration of Egyptian and Roman cultures that were far more integrated in death than in life . Portraits were either placed among the bandages wrapping the deceased's mummy or on the linen shrouds .
This example of the Fayum encaustic paintings made on wood of fine quality depicts a woman wearing a violet tunic . She has a long neck , a fleshy round face , a graceful dimple down her chin , large expressive eyes , and thick curved eyebrows . Hanging down from her smooth neck are two necklaces of pearls and emeralds . She wears a pair of fine gold spherical earrings that adds much to her beauty . Over her head , she wears a crown of fine taste decorated with small beads , which provide more light contrast at her head .
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