Lot 5C
Ancient Egypt, New Kingdom, 20th Dynasty (Dynasty XX), ca. 1189 to 1077 BCE. A rare, well-preserved wooden ushabti (shabti), mummiform, with its hair and features painted in black, as is a series of hieroglyphs written down the front of the lower body. Ushabti dolls are figures shaped like adult male or female mummies wearing traditional ancient Egyptian headdresses. The ancient Egyptians believed that after they died, their spirits would have to work in the "Field of Reeds" owned by the god of the underworld, Osiris. This meant doing agricultural labor - and it was required by all members of society, from workers to pharaohs. The wealthier nobility in Egyptian society were able to have ushabtis made of faience; blue faience was meant to reflect the color of the river Nile both on earth and in the afterlife. During later periods, people from the middle class also seem to have gained access to ushabti, and the materials used to create them diversified. Size: 1.55" W x 6.95" H (3.9 cm x 17.7 cm); 8.4" H (21.3 cm) on included custom stand.
The ushabti reads, "Osiris Aha-aa, justified." The hieroglyph for Osiris, Aha-aa was a royal scribe according to other texts and the use of "justified" relates to the verbiage of the Book of the Dead.
Provenance: private Florida, USA collection
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#129877
- Condition: Natural cracks in the wood with a small loss on the base and along one side from the base upward to the waist. Small losses to the pigment, especially around the face and hair.
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