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Egypt

Mummy-portrait of a youth
Roman Period, c. AD 100
Egypt
Wax encaustic on wood panel
h. 40.3 cm
UEA 326

From about the middle of the first century AD, and extending into the fourth century, painted portraits on wood replaced mummy masks of plaster in Egypt. Some of the mummy-portraits, like this example, were probably painted from life, and others were clearly mass-produced. Almost all portray the deceased in the prime of youth: hardly any aged people are depicted.

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