Theatron: The Mummy Portrait Of A Man

The arts of the western world have been largely dominated by the artistic standards established by the Greeks of the classical period. It is from the Greek word “theatron” meaning “a place for sitting”. It is said that the Greeks were the first people to erect special structures to bring audiences and theatrical performers together. The theatres were normally located near a populated area at the bottom, or cut out of a carefully selected, sloping hillside overlooking a seascape, plain, or city. They would then largely be constructed with three distinct parts: the theatron (viewing place) for spectators, the orchestra where the chorus and actors performed; and a later addition, the skene (scene building), which provided a scenic backing. The theatron …show more content…
The Mummy Portrait of a Man is from the Fayum region in Egypt. It was painted about 150-200 B.C. It is painted in encaustic on wood, and is a Fayum portrait. The term Fayum portrait is actually derived from a Coptic word meaning “The land of the lake,” which refers to the artificial Lake Qarun. This lake was a project of the kings of the Twelfth Dynasty, and it was this lake that made a desert area of about 100 kilometres into one of the most fertile areas in Egypt. It was such an amazing feat that the lake still to this day provides this region water keeping it fertile. The purpose of the Mummy Portrait of a Man as well as the Mummy Portrait of a Young Woman was to identify the mummy. These portraits were paintings of the person that they identified. The edges of the paintings have paint missing, due to the fact that these portraits were placed over the face of the mummies. The fact that both the artists of these portraits are unknown is due to gravediggers and collectors. When a mummy was found, the main objective was to find out more about the mummy itself, and many times the paintings were disregarded and considered to be of no