The Theological and Ritual Semantics of the Color White in Ptolemaic and Roman Wall Painting

Abstract

This paper investigates the theological and ritual semantic symbolism of the color white in Ptolemaic and Roman wall painting through a multidisciplinary study of the pronaoi of the Temple of Hathor at Dendara, and of the Temple of Amun at Deir el-Hagar, and room I of the mammisi at Kellis in the Dakhla Oasis. The study identifies the use of white within the Egyptian pigment practice, tracing the material evolution from ancient Egyptian palettes to the more varied Ptolemaic and Roman ones. Through integrated art-historical and archaeometric evidence, this research demonstrates that the preparatory layers and the white-painted surfaces in these sacred spaces were not merely artistic techniques but embodied symbolism. Thus this study proposes that the white pigment, both as matter and symbol, articulated an evolving dialogue between Egyptian purity and Greco-Roman metaphysics of light.