An Introduction to the Faiyum Mummy Portraits

Video

Kelly Macquire
by
published on 25 September 2022

The Faiyum (Fayum) mummy portraits were unearthed by the Egyptologist Flinders Petrie (though others had been found elsewhere earlier) and they were so impressive, expressive and life-like that Flinders Petrie thought that the subjects must have been alive when they were painted, however, it is clear now that this was not so; they were all painted after the person’s death. The Fayum Mummy portraits are images of people painted on wood in the Greek style of the person being depicted in three-quarter view.

The region of Fayum in ancient Egypt was a fertile oasis that was home to abundant plant and animal life. This lush oasis around one hundred km south of the ancient city of Memphis (near modern-day Cairo) wasn’t always so full of plant and animal life, but was once an arid desert basin until a branch of the Nile river silted up and water was diverted to it.

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— CHAPTERS —
0:00​ Introduction
1:08 Introduction to Fayum
2:24 The Fayum Mummy Portraits
5:50 Outro

— WANT TO KNOW MORE? —
Fayum https://member.worldhistory.org/Fayum/
Fayum Mummy Portraits https://member.worldhistory.org/collection/134/fayum-mummy-portraits/
Roman Egypt https://member.worldhistory.org/Roman_Egypt/
Ptolemaic Dynasty https://member.worldhistory.org/Ptolemaic_Dynasty/
Ancient Egyptian Art https://member.worldhistory.org/Egyptian_Art/

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The Ptolemaic Dynasty of Ancient Egypt: From Ptolemy I to Cleopatra VII
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Qi_yw5-qCg

— ATTRIBUTIONS —
You can find all attribution and credits for images, animations, graphics and music here - https://worldhistory.typehut.com/an-introduction-to-the-faiyum-mummy-portraits-images-and-attributions-11080

The music used in this recording is the intellectual copyright of Michael Levy, a prolific composer for the recreated lyres of antiquity, and used with the creator's permission. Michael Levy's music is available to stream at all the major digital music platforms. Find out more on:
https://www.ancientlyre.com
https://open.spotify.com/artist/7Dx2vFEg8DmOJ5YCRm4A5v?si=emacIH9CRieFNGXRUyJ9
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ1X6F7lGMEadnNETSzTv8A

— THUMBNAIL IMAGE —
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/547861?ao=on&showOnly=openAccess&ft=mummy+portrait&offset=0&rpp=40&pos=10
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Open Access https://www.metmuseum.org/about-the-met/policies-and-documents/open-access
CC0 https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en

World History Encyclopedia
www.worldhistory.org

#faiyummummy #fayummummy #fayumportraits

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About the Author

Kelly Macquire
Kelly is a graduate from Monash University who has completed her BA (Honours) in Ancient History and Archaeology, focussing on iconography and status in Pylos burials. She has a passion for mythology and the Aegean Bronze Age.

The video and its description text are provided by Youtube. This website claims no authorship of this content; we are republishing it for educational purposes.

Cite This Work

APA Style

Macquire, K. (2022, September 25). An Introduction to the Faiyum Mummy Portraits. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/video/2838/an-introduction-to-the-faiyum-mummy-portraits/

Chicago Style

Macquire, Kelly. "An Introduction to the Faiyum Mummy Portraits." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified September 25, 2022. https://www.worldhistory.org/video/2838/an-introduction-to-the-faiyum-mummy-portraits/.

MLA Style

Macquire, Kelly. "An Introduction to the Faiyum Mummy Portraits." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 25 Sep 2022. Web. 25 Apr 2024.

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