Ancient "Modernism" in Greco-Roman Egypt

In the February 2012 edition of Smithsonian Magazine, there is an excellent article on the beautiful "Fayum portraits," dating from the Greco-Roman period of Egyptian history (c. 332 BCE--642 CE). Discovered between 1887 and 1889 CE, by the British archaeologist W. M. Flinders Petrie, these portraits are arguably some of the most exquisite portraits in the history of art. To read more about these portraits, please click here to read and access this article. Be sure to follow the links to view the gallery of accompanying images!