A copy of the famous Boy Boxers fresco from Santorini.
Minoan Boy Boxers fresco tile (large)
dimensions
Height: 41cm Width: 28cmabout the original Boxers fresco
The original, excavated at Akrotiri on Thera/Santorini, is now in the National Museum in Athens and dates to ca 1500 BC. The figures are painted on the white ground of the plaster, below an expanse of red, known as the silent wave, due to the undulating lower edge. The head of each figure is partially shaven - conventionally shown painted blue - with two long tresses at the back and two small locks of hair above the brow.
The boys wore earrings, necklaces, bracelets and anklets, as well as a boxing glove on the right hand and a belt around the waist. This is the earliest known representation of boxing gloves.
about the painted tiles
They are all made in Greece in the workshop of the Lioulias family, with whom It's All Greek is proud to have been working since 2004.
The tiles are made of a resin compound. Many have a 'craquelure' effect, to replicate the fine pattern of formed on the surface of paintings, in particular due to the ageing of paints and pigments.
Should you wish to put these tiles in a bathroom or garden, it would be wise to apply a coat of transparent PVA sealant to protect them from rain and frost. They are supplied ready to hang, with a sturdy, embedded metal strip or, in the case of the larger ones, two strips which can be connected with picture wire. They can also be incorporated as features within a tiled wall.