Egypt was one of the very first lands to embrace Christianity, long before it was sanctioned by the Roman Empire. Tradition holds that Saint Mark the Evangelist brought the Christian faith to Alexandria in the 1st century A.D., establishing one of the world’s earliest Christian communities. By the time Constantine issued the Edict of Milan...
Herakleides lived during the time when Egypt was under Roman rule, which followed after the fall of the Ptolemaic period. His name, “Herakleides, son of Thermos” is inscribed on his mummy shroud. Herakleides was mummified following traditional Egyptian practices but with Roman influences. His body was wrapped in a linen shroud painted red, symbolizing life...
This Faiyum portrait of a young woman dates from around 100-200 A.D., and depicts an Egyptian woman with hair tied back in a bun and styled in ringlets, wearing a dusty pink and rust tunic, with thick eyebrows, and baretta earrings. She has a slight Mona-Lisa smile as she gazes ahead. These portraits, known as...
White-robed priests of Isis perform a water ritual as chanting devotees line the steps of the goddess’s temple in this wall painting from Herculaneum. Herculaneum was an ancient Roman town, located in the modern-day commune of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under volcanic ash and pumice in the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79...
This gold medallion of the Roman Emperor Caracalla, was found in Abu Qir, Egypt, and dates from, c. 215-243 A.D. It is one of 20 medallions found within a hoard in Abu Qir, Egypt. One of the medallion’s is marked with “Olympic Games of the year 274”, which could mean that these were medallions given...
