Egyptian Faience Hierogyphic Shabti

A finely made, coil-formed Nile silt clay, red-polished pottery vessel with elongated ovoid body, pointed base, rounded shoulder, and narrowing neck widening to a slightly everted rim; the upper section blackened through inverted firing, creating the characteristic black-topped finish of Upper Egyptian Predynastic ceramic production; the surface retaining a lustrous burnish with visible vertical polishing marks; accompanied by a display stand. 3.67 kg total, 40 cm (40.5 cm high including stand)



with Joe Gerena Fine Arts, New York, USA. Collection of Erich Spangenberg, Texas, 1980s. Fortuna Fine Arts Ltd, New York, USA. Wyvern Collection, acquired from the above on 20 March 2018. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13349-256959.

This is an exceptionally large Naqada II black-topped vessel; comparable large examples generally measure approximately 33–37 cm (e.g., Aberdeen Museums ABDMS003532, 36.5 cm; British Museum EA30966, 33.6 cm; National Museum of Ireland 1899:311, 36 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art 36.1.2, 35 cm), although most examples are significantly smaller. Black-topped vessels were hand-made from finely prepared Nile silt clay, often tempered and coated with a red hematite slip. Larger examples frequently took the form of hes-jars with tapered or pointed bases and narrowing necks and vases with rather more torpedo-like bodies, like this example, while others were made as beakers or wide bowls. Experimental studies suggest that the vessels were fired inverted, with their openings buried in sawdust or other organic material, producing the characteristic blackened rim and interior. After firing, their surfaces were carefully burnished to a high polish, leaving visible polishing marks. These vessels were used mainly in ritual and funerary contexts for the presentation and pouring of liquid offerings. Found chiefly in higher-status burials and cultic deposits, their distinctive red-and-black colour scheme was probably associated with Egyptian concepts of death, regeneration, and cyclical renewal, making them especially appropriate for funerary ceremonies and ritual activities.

A mould-made figurine depicting a figure wearing a duplex wig and the projecting apron of an overseer shabti, with defined legs and feet below; the right arm by the side and the left bent across the chest; mounted on a custom-made stand. 44 grams total, 10 cm including stand



From the collection of David Donlan (1947-2025), a dedicated and lifelong collector with a passion for the ancient world and the natural sciences, forming his collection from 1960s onwards, using many reputable dealers across the United Kingdom, including the well-regarded Coincraft and The Parthenon Gallery.

Shabtis in daily life dress appeared in the late 18th Dynasty. By the late Ramesside Period, the general form had developed into the so-called “reis” or overseer figure, often depicted holding a whip. This form gained popularity during the subsequent 21st and 22nd Dynasties. Although this shabti lacks a whip, the bent arm is characteristic of those holding such a tool, suggesting that it belongs to the “reis” type. Ideally, there was one overseer shabti for every ten, typically mummiform, “worker” shabtis.

Carved in the round with closed wings and a slightly curving body, pierced through the body for suspension. 3.7 grams, 26 mm



From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s.

The depiction somewhat resembles a cicada, although this would be very rare in ancient Egyptian plastic arts. The grasshopper and the locust were known in Egyptian as sꜣnḥm or snḥm. Although the insect was often depicted in Old Kingdom tomb scenes, it appeared in various other forms of visual art, such as amulets, cosmetic vessels, and beads, only during the New Kingdom, when it served as a symbol of regeneration.