venerdì 3 febbraio 2017

[#2] Egyptian faience ushabti

Egyptian faience ushabti

Egypt, Late Dynastic Period, 554 - 332 BC (27th - 30th dynasty)

Material: faience


Size: 10.2 x 2.6 cms


Collection: Italian private collection (acquired from a Dutch art gallery in 2017 - before part of a Germn collection formed in the 1970s)



The owner guarantees that this item has been acquired and hold in a legal way.


Here is a collection of similar ushabtis from the same mold.


Inscribed Egyptian faience ushabti belonging to the Late Period (27th - 30th dynasty). The figure follows the funerary tradition: it is mummiform with crossed arms and Osirian beard. It wears a typical headress and brings two agricultural tools in his hands. The frontal vertical panel is inscribed with hieroglyphs.

In ancient Egypt, Ushabti (or Shabits) were funerary figures placed in tombs among the grave goods. They were intended to act as servants of the deceased (above all in agricultual works). Their use started during the Middle Kingdom and developed through the following centuries. The most common materials were faience, wood and pottery. The inscriptions were taken from the 6th chapter of the "Book of the Dead" or from other funerary traditions.

Here is a hypotesis on the ushabti text.


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