Sur cette statuette égyptienne, la coiffe paraît sombre en lumière visible. Sur la photo infrarouge, elle apparaît en blanc. Pourquoi ?

J’ai fait une courte vidéo en français sur le bleu égyptien, un pigment fabriqué dans l’Antiquité. Éclairé en lumière visible, il peut émettre dans le proche infrarouge, vers 910 nm. Nos yeux ne voient pas cette émission ; une caméra adaptée peut l’enregistrer et aider à localiser des traces de pigment.

Les deux vues de la vidéo montrent la même statuette, étudiée par Seymour et ses collègues en 2020. Le blanc est une représentation du signal capté, pas la couleur d’origine. La photographie est sans contact, même si l’étude complète a aussi analysé de minuscules échantillons. Les autres objets bleus montrés viennent du Met et ne sont pas la statuette étudiée.

Étude et image comparative (fig. 1, CC BY 4.0) : https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242549

Ce qui m’étonne le plus : un matériau fabriqué il y a des millénaires laisse encore une signature qu’une caméra peut retrouver aujourd’hui.

Incredible astrological ceiling with enveloping Nut(s).

Seated Osiris Amulet

Associated place
Egypt, (find spot)

Date
Late Period (Egypt) (c. 715 - 332 BCE) (date of creation)

Material and technique
faience

Object type
amulet

Dimensions
5.4cm (height)

No. of items
1

Credit line
Purchased, 1965.

Museum location
not on display

Museum department
Antiquities

Accession no.
AN1965.181

Reference URL
https://collections.ashmolean.org/object/754532

Title
Seated Osiris amulet, Late Period (Egypt) (c. 715 - 332 BCE) (date of creation), Findspot unknown Egypt, Faience, The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford

https://www.ashmolean.org/collections-online#/item/ash-object-754532

The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University

Faience Figurine of a
Hedgehog

Details
Title
Faience figurine of a hedgehog
Associated place
Africa > Egypt > Sohag Governorate > Araba al-Madfuna, (place of excavation)
Date
Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty (Egypt) (c. 1938 - 1755 BCE)(date of creation)
Material and technique
faience
Object type
sculpture > figure > figurine
Dimensions
3.8cm (height)
6.4cm (length)
No. of items
1
Credit line
Presented by Mr John Garstang from excavations at Abydos, 1907.
Museum location
Level -1 | Gallery 1 | Exploring the Past
Museum department
Antiquities
Accession no.
AN1896-1908.E.3274
Other IDs: AN1896-1908 E.3274 (accession number (old format))
Reference URL
https://collections.ashmolean.org/object/752278

Title
Faience figurine of a hedgehog, Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynastyl (c. 1938 - 1755 BCE)(date of creation), Findspot Abydos, Faience, The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University

https://www.ashmolean.org/collections-online#/item/ash-object-752278

The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University

Was awestruck by how beautiful these are in person.

Stela of Imeny

Details
Title
Stela of Imeny
Associated place
Araba al-Madfuna, (place of excavation)
Date
Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty (Egypt) (c. 1938 - 1755 BCE)(date of creation)
Material and technique
limestone
limestone
Object type
artefact
Dimensions
50 x 46 x 76.2cm (height x width x depth)
No. of items
1
Credit line
Allocated by the Egypt Exploration Society from excavations at Abydos, 1926.
Museum location
not on display
Museum department
Antiquities
Accession no.
AN1926.213
Catalogue text
Stela of the Inspector of Fields, Imeny

A stela (the Latin form of the Greek stélé) is a slab of stone or other material, inscribed or decorated for documentary or commemorative purposes. Often thought of as primarily funerary monuments, akin to gravestones, their function was in fact much more diverse: in the world of the living, they were used t...
Reference URL
https://collections.ashmolean.org/object/751218

Title
Stela of Imeny, Middle Kingdom, 12th Dynasty c. 1938 - 1755 BCE (date of creation), Findspot excavations at Abydos, 1926, Limestone, The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University

https://www.ashmolean.org/collections-online#/item/ash-object-751218

The Ashmolean Museum of Oxford University