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The Historical Use Of Fayum Art

by Lora Weeks

There is an ancient form of Egyptian art called Fayum art. This art form is special in that it depicts the real portrait of a person painted onto a wooden board and later attached to them when they are mummified. The real features of the individual are captured in stunning accuracy and gives us a real idea of what individuals of the day looked like before they died.

Traditionally these paintings were placed covering the mummy face and sometimes upper part of the body. They were attached to the cloth used to wrap the body and were generally the head and shoulders of a single person viewed from the front with the head slightly turned.

The images depicted in <A href="http://www.fayum.net">fayum art</A> are of men and women and range from the very young to the very old in age. Slabs of hardwood were imported specifically for the task and rectangle pieces were cut and smoothed down to prepare the piece for painting. Sometimes they were even coated in a layer of plaster to provide a more substantial painting surface.

Paints used varied from wax to egg-based tempera. Different painting techniques produced different effects on the picture, from subtle shades to the bright, vivid tones generally found in the area on other paintings. At times, gold leaf was even used to adorn jewelry or other decorations in the painting.

The piece of wood was then placed on the face of the body and wrapped over with the cloth so you could see the face through it, giving an eery effect. Although for modern day thinking, this is somewhat creepy, for the time it was a way to honor the dead. We are lucky to have such pieces that have stood the test of time to give us an accurate picture of people of this time.

Mummy portraits were generally reserved for the upper class citizens. They were expensive extravagances and not every family could afford one. Many mummies have been found that were not decorated with Fayum art of the individual.



You can visit the website <a href="http://www.fayum.net">http://www.fayum.net</a> for more helpful information about fayum art.

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New Unique Article!

Title: The Historical Use Of Fayum Art
Author: Lora Weeks
Email: nathanwebster335@live.com
Keywords: fayum art, arts, entertainment, culture, society
Word Count: 346
Category: Movies
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