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.

Provenance

Acquired 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.

Literature

Cf. The Michael C. Carlos Museum, 2015.050.002-.005, for four shabtis of Hori, similar to the example here.

Footnotes

A 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.

CONDITION

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LOT 0048