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LOT 0048
Egyptian Faience Ushabti
2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
5 7/8 in. (134 grams, 15 cm).
Mummiform figure with black-pigment facial detailing, sidelock, tripartite wig, dorsal seed-net, tiered collar, and vertical panel of hieroglyphic text.
ProvenanceAcquired in the mid 1980s.
Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent.
Private collection, since the late 1990s.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12848-241648.
Cf. The Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2015.050.002-.005, for four shabtis of Hori, similar to the example here.
FootnotesA shabti (also known as ushabti or shawabti) is a small funerary figurine found in ancient Egyptian tombs, from around 2000 BCE to 30 BCE. Its main purpose was to act as a servant for the deceased in the afterlife, carrying out manual tasks like farming or irrigation as directed by the gods. Shabtis were frequently inscribed with a magical formula from the Book of the Dead to ensure they would animate when summoned.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
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Romano-Egyptian Mosaic Glass Fragment Group
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Irregular plate fragments with banded, rosette and other designs. 34.6 grams total, 21-48 mm
Ex Gallery Mikazaki, prior to 1994. From the collection of a London, UK, gentleman. -
Egyptian Blue Faience Amulet Representing Taweret
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £546
Modelled standing on a rectangular base in characteristic hippopotamus-headed form with a dorsal pillar, pierced for suspension at the rear of the tall two-feather headdress. 5.18 grams, 52 mm
Private collection, Carouge, Switzerland, assembled in the 1980s-1990s. Thence by descent to the collection of Mr S.P., since 2020. -
Egyptian Black Hardstone Scarab
Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Dark green hardstone with paler speckles; with a boldly carved head, clypeus, prothorax and elytra, and legs indicated at the sides; plain underside. 17 grams, 29 mm
Ex Irene Newman, Birdham, Chichester, West Sussex, England. with Stride & Son Auctioneers, Chichester, West Sussex, England, 23 April 2015, no.1599 [Part]. Acquired by the present owner at the above sale.
The scarab, which represented the dung beetle, was the most popular amulet in ancient Egypt for approximately two thousand years until the Ptolemaic Period when it gradually fell out of favour. The popularity of scarabs extended beyond the borders of Egypt, and they were also distributed and produced in other regions, such as Phoenicia and Israel. The beetle is named khepri, derived from the verb 'to come into existence', and was considered the embodiment of the creator god Khepri, who was self-engendered. The ancient Egyptians mistakenly believed that the young beetle emerging from the dung ball was the result of an act of self-creation.
