Boy with the Lock of Horus

The artwork

A shaved head with a single lock of hair left to grow beside the ear: the sign that this boy had been placed under the protection of the goddess Isis. You receive it printed on handmade Amalfi paper, in a handmade frame.

• The serious face, the large eyes, the lock of hair and the necklace with its amulet.
• A tender and intense portrait that brings warmth to a bedroom or a study.
• A gift for anyone who loves Egypt and its mysteries.

It was painted in Egypt between AD 150 and 200, when the country was a province of Rome, on a wooden panel meant to be placed over the face of the mummy, among the bandages. It is one of the portraits we call Fayum portraits, after the region of Egypt where many were found.

At that time many children died young, and parents tried to protect them with magic: amulets hung round the neck, like the one the boy wears on a black cord, and sacred hairstyles. A shaved head with one long lock behind the ear marked children entrusted to Isis, because it recalled Horus, the goddess's infant son. The portrait, held in the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, tells us that this was not always enough. It is also a very small panel, even for a child.

In a bedroom it brings home the gaze of a boy whose parents tried with all their strength to protect him. It is a moving gift.

Unique quality material

Print on handmade Amalfi paper
Sheet size: 29 x 42 cm (11.4 x 16.5 in)
With frame: 31 x 44 cm (12.2 x 17.3 in)
Material: artwork printed on very fine handmade Amalfi paper with deckled edges
Frame: dark brown with gold fillet, handmade, with glass