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3 clusters · 14 sources · 3 days · First seen · Last updated

Fayum mummy portrait restoration and exhibition

Overview

Egypt and Italy have collaborated on the restoration of the ‘Tondo of the Two Brothers,’ a rare 2nd-century circular encaustic painting from the Fayum mummy portrait collection. The restoration process, conducted by specialists from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir and Italian experts from Rome’s Fabrica Conservazione e Restauro and the Museo dell’Ara Pacis, focused on addressing the fragility of the wooden support and painted surface through minimal intervention.

The three-week conservation campaign addressed specific damage from wood-boring insects and corrected errors from previous interventions, such as incorrectly reassembled facial fragments. To stabilize the piece, conservators utilized discreet balsa-wood supports.

Following the completion of the restoration, Egypt has unveiled the piece, which is now prepared to leave the country for the first time in history. The restored masterpiece—which depicts two individuals and reflects a cultural intersection of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman influences—is set to be a centerpiece for a major exhibition in Rome. Titled ‘The Power of Portraiture. Egypt and Rome: Faces of Fayum,’ the exhibition is scheduled to run at the Ara Pacis Museum from November 5, 2026, to May 2, 2027. The exhibition will feature over 110 objects, including painted panels, masks, and funerary shrouds, with some works loaned from institutions such as the Louvre.

Entities

Sherif Fathy · Egyptian Museum · Egypt · Fayum mummy portraits · Egyptian Museum in Tahrir

Timeline

  1. [CULTURE] 5 sources
    Egypt to loan restored Roman-era Tondo to Rome

    The restored 2nd-century ‘Tondo of the Two Brothers’ will leave Egypt for the first time to be exhibited in Rome as part of a major international showcase of Fayum mummy portraits.

  2. [CULTURE] 4 sources
    Cairo unveils restoration of ancient Fayum portrait

    The restoration of the 2nd-century ‘Tondo dei due Fratelli,’ a rare Fayum portrait, has been unveiled in Cairo following a collaboration between Egyptian and Italian experts.

  3. [CULTURE] 6 sources
    Egypt to lend Fayum mummy portraits to Rome exhibition

    Egypt will lend a major part of its famed Fayum mummy portrait collection to a temporary exhibition in Rome, marking the first time these ancient Greco-Roman artworks will travel abroad.

Sources

a-specto.bg · arabic.cnn.com · artincontext.org · artnews.com · askanews.it · edexlive.com · elbalad.news · galerie-schuette.de · napolipiu.com · newsday.com · novini247.com · qds.it · umbriaecultura.it · wtop.com

This summary has been updated 2 times: see revision history