Understanding wood choices for ancient panel painting and mummy portraits in the APPEAR project through scanning electron microscopy

Abstract

• In Roman-period Egypt, it is clear that despite maintaining the traditional practice of mummification, there was a fashion for funerary portraiture that echoed Greek and Roman traditions in the Mediterranean region. The excellent condition of preservation of the wood anatomy of these mummy portraits enabled an unexpected revelation from their identifications—the majority of these works are made from European timbers such as lime wood rather than native Egyptian woods. Over the last twenty-one years, the innovative use of high-performance SEM at the British Museum has facilitated the taking of microsamples from mummy portraits and other painted wood panels. The factors determining individual wood choices constitute intriguing and somewhat elusive elements framing this scientific research, but the search for enlightenment continues.