Egyptian Museum's 2,000-year-old 'Two Brothers' portrait restored before Rome show
Egyptian and Italian conservators have restored the Tondo of the Two Brothers, a round Roman-era painting from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir, which will go on show in Rome from 5 November.
The restoration of the Tondo of the Two Brothers, one of the best-known Fayum-style portraits, was presented at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir on Sunday 11 October by Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sherif Fathy. The round wooden panel, about 60 centimetres across and painted with pigments mixed with wax, shows two young men side by side and dates from the 2nd century AD.
Egyptian conservators worked with the Italian restorers of Fabrica Conservazione e Restauro in the museum's own labs. The panel had been split in two, its colours had faded and old insect damage had left parts of the paint without support. "We do not restore to beautify; we restore to preserve," said Hisham El Leithy, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
The painting will travel to Rome for "The Power of the Portrait. Egypt and Rome: The Faces of Fayum" at the Ara Pacis Museum, which opens on 5 November 2026 and runs until 2 May 2027. It is the first time Egypt has lent a group of Fayum portraits from its museums for a show abroad.
If you want to see it in Cairo, the Egyptian Museum is open daily from 9am to 5pm; the ministry has not said on which day the panel leaves for Italy. The museum also marks 124 years since it opened this year, and a celebration is planned for its 125th anniversary next year.