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Red shroud mummy

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Object name: Red shroud mummy

Accession no.: E.63.1903

Other numbers and markings: tbd

Dimensions: H cm W cm D cm

Brief description:

Red-shroud portrait mummy of a man. The mummy is supported on two narrow wooden planks, which are tied together with bandages. This structure and the mummy were wrapped together in a shroud made of a single piece of plain-weave linen, folded neatly over the feet but gathered more roughly at the top of the head and stuck in place. The shroud is painted in bright scarlet made from a mixture of red lead, chalk/calcite and carbon-based black, and applied in a beeswax medium. The decorative elements are outlined in grey paint (lead white, yellow ochre and carbon-based black in a wax and oil medium) and completed with purple paint (made from carbon-based black, iron oxide red, calcite and lead white), copper-based green frit, and gold leaf, with final detailing in black.

The portrait panel sits in an opening cut into the front of the shroud. The painting was executed in a beeswax medium, using a pigment palette similar to that found in the shroud decoration. The paint was applied with a brush along with a variety of tools to build up texture.

Date: AD 100-180

Further dating information

Find spot: El-Hibeh

Further find spot information

Acquisition: Given by the Egypt Exploration Fund

Construction, decoration and materials:

Other information

Bibliography

Red shroud mummy

Detail of the portrait panel

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