Egg tempera is a technique known since antiquity and has successfully served the efforts of artists to express their painting concerns and visions.

This book records the extensive experience of G. Kordis in the use of egg tempera, which, after many trials and laboratory research, he combines with a certain type of underpainting. He attempts to show how this technique, which constitutes a personal technological proposal, can be combined with the traditional Byzantine style, established for centuries in the territory of Hellenism as the appropriate way to render Orthodox icons.

In the first chapters of the first part, the visual, but not the "significant," role of color is described. The visual autonomy of the Byzantine painting system is examined, with a contrasting reference to the Western naturalistic painting system and other contemporary visual proposals. The foundations of the conclusions are attempted with an analysis of selected works of Byzantine and post-Byzantine painting. There is a detailed description of the egg tempera technique with underpainting and an evaluation based on its functionality within the framework of the Byzantine painting system.

In the second part, the egg tempera technique with underpainting is presented at a laboratory level. More specifically, techniques for preparing the receiving medium (wood), gilding techniques, and mainly how landscapes, garments, objects, faces, and compositions are painted with the egg tempera technique with underpainting are presented.

There are also appendices with images from mural ensembles and portable icons painted with the technique presented in the book.