Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of a Man Wearing a Laurel Wreath

Egyptian; The Fayum, Egypt

Date

Roman Period, early to mid–2nd century

Medium

Lime (linden) wood, beeswax, pigments, gold, textile, and natural resin

Culture

Al Fayyum

Department

Arts of Africa

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This portrait belongs to a large group of similar works known as “Fayum portraits,” so-named for the region in northern Egypt in which many have been discovered. To create this man’s likeness, the artist painted a thin piece of wood with encaustic, or pigmented wax, a medium that not only gave the impression of three-dimensionality but also resisted fading and deterioration in the dry climate of Egypt. These highly individualized and lifelike portraits conveyed the wealth and status of the person depicted through clothing, jewelry, and other embellishments, such as the gold wreath of laurels worn by this man.

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