Painting and Painting Materials in ancient Egypt
An online Zoom Lecture

Date: Saturday 24^th February 2024 at 2.00 pm
By Dr Ruth Siddall
Cost: Free for Members and £4 Visitors
Venue: Oakwood Centre Woodley In-Person only 2.00 pm No advance booking required

This talk will introduce the pigments and other raw materials used in painting in ancient Egypt, through the Pharaonic to the Roman Periods. These materials include locally extracted and imported mineral pigments, ground-breaking synthetic pigments and materials of organic origin such as dyes, gums and resins. The talk will show how these materials were used by painters to create the distinct colour palette which is familiar in all items of Egyptian Art.


Biography

Ruth Siddall is a geologist who applies analytical techniques to the study of pigments, ceramics and stone in cultural heritage.  She has worked in archaeological contexts in the UK and the broader Mediterranean region but has a particular interest in Ancient Egyptian and Roman Period painting and painting techniques. Ruth is a co-author of The Pigment Compendium: A Dictionary of Historical Pigments (2008) and has contributed the chapter on pigments to the 2nd Edition of the Encyclopedia of Archaeology (2023). She is also the Chair of UCL’s Petrie Museum of Egyptian and Sudanese Archaeology Advisory Group.