Tabernacle Model Assembly Guide

4. Paint the priests

The regular priests (Exodus 39:27-29): Time to move on to the more challenging tasks! First, paint the faces and the hands of all the priests (including the high priest) with a skin color by mixing some yellow, orange and white paint together. Then paint the sashes with red, purple and blue paint (Exodus 39:29). It may be easier to use a toothpick instead of a brush (if you don't have an ultra-fine brush).

After the paint has dried, paint the regular priests with white caps and white robes (like the sheep, the white paint gives them a more realistic texture and less plastic-like look). After the white paint has dried, paint the eyes (again, a toothpick might be more useful here) black and the beards gray or black (or leave it white).

The high priest: First, realize that the high priest will take the most time to paint. If it's your first time, it may take you a couple of hours. So be patient.

Start by painting the "squares" on the ephod with alternating red, purple, blue and gold paint, as well as the pattern of the waist band (Exodus 28:6-8). Then paint the breastpiece with gold first, including the two cords that go over his shoulders. After the breastpiece has dried, paint four rows of "dots" with three stones in each row in the following colors (Exodus 28:17-20):

ruby (red)	topaz (yellow)	emerald (green)
turquoise (bluish green)	sapphire (blue)	diamond (white)
jacinth (red)	agate (white)	amethyst (purple)
beryl (bluish green)	onyx (black)	jasper (brown)

Paint the circle of the chord on each shoulder with onyx (blackish) color (Exodus 28:9-12). Then paint the bottom half of the ephod (below the squares but above the dots) with blue, as well as the the upper sleeves on both arms (Exodus 28:31). Paint the lower sleeves (the tunic) white (Exodus 28:39, 38:27, 28).

Paint the dots (bells and pomegranates, Exodus 28:34) with alternating gold and red. Finally, paint a blue line (cord) and a gold circle on his forehead (plate, Exodus 28:36-38).

Now you've finished the hardest part of the assembly process! After painting all the objects, we can now proceed to put the pieces together.

*Note: An acrylic varnish can be coated on the rubber figures (priests, sheep, cows, Aaron's staff, etc.) to protect the paint from chipping from excessive handling.

< Back

Next >