Egyptian Pale Blue Glazed Shabti.

Fragment of chocolate-coloured wood with incised hieroglyphs inlaid with white paste, preserving the lower part of a cartouche containing Amenhotep III's birth name, with the epithet "Ruler of Thebes" still legible, and two fragmentary columns of hieroglyphs to the right, belonging to a version of the shabti spell. 8.41 grams, 42 mm



From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s.

Amenhotep III was buried at Thebes in the Valley of the Kings (tomb KV22). His funerary equipment included shabtis in various hardstones and wood. The preserved text, ...ḫnt sḏm.t[n]... ('...forefront; and when you hear...'), belongs to a less common variant of the shabti spell found on other examples of Amenhotep III's shabtis.

Plano-convex in section, with a segmented upper face; the underside features an incuse design of a winged scarab, two perching Horus falcons, and a winged uraeus above, with a frieze of four cobras interspersed with three nefer signs below; supplied with an impression. 3.53 grams, 19 mm



Acquired from Derek Content, 24 June 1975. Private collection of Kal Noselson, New York, acquired between 1976 and the late 1990s; thence by descent. Accompanied by an original handwritten invoice from Derek Content, dated 24 June 1975.

Deep blue, lustrous-glazed mummiform shabti with a tripartite wig and modelled arms; each hand holding a hoe, with the implements, wig, and facial details rendered in black; on the back of the figure, below the wig, hangs a centrally positioned trapezoidal seed bag in black; the bottom half of the figure bears eight columns of hieroglyphic text in black, giving a version of the shabti spell. 229 grams, 15.1 cm



From the cache of mummies of the priests of Amun at Deir el-Bahari, found by the Abdul Rassoul family circa 1910. E.E.S. sale, November 1967, sold for £5.00. Acquired from Richardson, St Christopher’s Place, Wigmore Street. London, late 1960s, for £7.00 and 10 shillings. From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s. Accompanied by an academic report by Paul Whelan. Accompanied by an old handwritten information card by Peter Clayton, collection no.122. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.13491-262881.