Lecture - The "Fayum portraits", by Valentin Lepaul, archaeologist, cultural mediator

"At the crossroads of Pharaonic tradition, Hellenistic art and Roman fashion, the Fayum portraits are unique objects. In Roman Egypt, these painted wooden masks were affixed to the heads of mummies to give them a living face. Too often confined to the history of art, what can an archaeological approach teach us about the creation of these portraits, their authors and their models? Let's take an example through the study of eleven portraits from the ancient city of Antinoe.