# Painting a mummy model???



## rkoenn (Dec 18, 2007)

I am working on the Moebius mummy and have a couple of other mummy models in my stash to build in the future. I was wondering what the best method is to get a good finish on the mummy itself? I always thought that painting it a beige base and then applying a dark wash followed by some dry brushing should work but the time I tried this on the Flintstone mummy bust I have I wasn't thrilled. It seems from a couple of posts I have seen in the past that some people start with a fairly dark brown base and then do lots of lighter dry brushing to do the job. If anyone who's turned out a good model has suggestions on how they did it please chime in, I would appreciate it.

Thanks,

Bob K.


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## djnick66 (May 2, 2008)

I did a mummy using a brown base color before but found he was just kind of dull and uninteresting when done. I decided to use some artistic license and try to introduce some color into subsequent mummies. 

This Aurora Glow Mummy was base coated in a dark blue-grey and then drybrushed with grey and pure white for the wrappings



















I painted this mummy in a similar manner with a blue grey base on the body and olive drab for the skin.


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## getter weevil (May 20, 2010)

I would recommend having a base coat of some light gray. Then would dry brush with one or two other shades of gray. I did a sandy yellow dry brushing on my mummy kit. Instead of a black wash I recommend using various dark brown or rusty colors, let them set a few minutes and wipe most of wash off while its wet, it can create a very old look on the mummy. For a good brown stain I used vallejo "Smoke" and thinned it down, very versatile.


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## Zombie_61 (Apr 21, 2004)

In the sequels to the 1932 movie they tend to describe the Mummy as "gray", but I've never seen a gray mummy in real life; the majority of them tend to be various shades of light and dark browns, though sometimes the mummified flesh looks like a very dark gray, almost black. Use Google Images to see photos of actual mummies and you'll see what I mean.

Regardless, the technique should be the same--basecoat, washes, and drybrushing with various shades of whatever colors you choose. Though not necessarily in that order--I've seen some builds where the modeler did the washes after drybrushing, and it helped to tone down and blend the drybrushing, giving the finished build a more realistic appearance. Depending on the figure, I generally prefer very subtle drybrushing with minor differences in paint shades built up in several layers from dark to light, as though the light falling on the figure is causing natural highlights and shadows rather than the paint. But mummies...well, every one is different, each having had various elements affect their appearance over the centuries--air, light, dirt, moisture, bacteria, body fluids, insect infestation...you get the idea. Again, I suggest you look at photos of actual mummies and try to replicate what you see.


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## Mark McGovern (Apr 25, 1999)

Bob,

I think that it's less the color palette you choose than how much you can vary it. To me, the most interesting and realistic mummies are those where the modeler has made an effort to bring a variety of hues and/or tones to the individual wrappings. Maybe not every _single_ turn, so there's a barber pole appearance - but not a uniform brown, white, or whatever color, either.

This approach can raise another problem: the many colors might lose cohesion. There are a couple of tricks with which to solve that problem. One is to apply an overall wash of highly thinned Burnt Umber, which can make almost any color scheme pull together. Another is to dust the figure with ground up artists pastels, mixed to a middling hue - not too dark or too light a tonal value of whatever the overall color of the figure is.

Here's an Aurora Mummy that I painted to match the box art: http://members.toast.net/blackswampmodelers/MM_Mummy%20Page.htm. The top photos better illustrate the idea of varying the tones of the wrappings. I used colored pastels to pull the disparate colors together on a Horizon Mummy; there are photos of the model on this page: http://members.toast.net/blackswampmodelers/MM_Miscellaneous Page.htm. You'll need to scroll down a bit to get to the Mummy pics.


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## djnick66 (May 2, 2008)

It is interesting to look at photos of real mummies but they bear little resemblance to the Hollywood ones. Looking at Rameses, Seti, etc. their skin is a very dary brown. nearly black. The bandages or linen on mummies today is not original either, for the most part. The original bandages being cut away and discarded centuries ago.

Seti I is probably the closest resemblance to a movie mummy. He is rather noble looking 

http://www.guardians.net/spotlite/images/Seti_I_sm.jpg


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## fernieo (Mar 22, 2000)

Here's a pic of The Aurora Mummy that FX Makeup guy (of Stan Winston Studios's) John Rosengrant painted back in the 80's:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fGBwXKmAlqU/Tp5w5UqQjpI/AAAAAAAAAZA/_vPEpIZOkHk/s1600/MummyAurora01.jpg

Pix of other Aurora Kits on this blog here:
http://monsterhistory101.blogspot.com/


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