3-035-797 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Mummy Portrait of a Youth, A.D. 150-200. Additional Info: A high infant mortality rate in Roman Egypt encouraged confidence in magical spells to ward off illness and injury. For this reason the boy wears a small round container for amulets on a plain black necklace, possibly made from leather. His head has been almost completely shaved to feature a single lock at the back (with golden clip) and two small tufts on his brow. This pattern is in accordance with the practices of devotees of the goddess Isis, whose son the god-child Horus was the model for this hair treatment.