Helena of Egypt

Helena (active during the 4th century BC in Egypt) was a painter who learned her craft from her father, Timon, who was also an artist. She worked in the period after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. Helena painted a scene of Alexander defeating the Persian ruler, Darius III, at the Battle of Issus in Southern Asia Minor.

Pliny the Elder writes that “The Battle of Issus” was Helena’s only recorded work, of which there is a mosaic reproduction. Indeed, a mosaic reproduction was found in Pompeii. The attribution is disputed because of Helena's gender; no other mosaic work by women has ever been uncovered from this period in history.