Fine Ancient Egyptian Faience Shabti / Ushabti - 30th Dynasty

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Fine Ancient Egyptian Faience Shabti / Ushabti - 30th Dynasty:
$2400.00

A finely modeled Ancient Egyptian faience shabti, dating to the 30th Dynasty (381-343 BC).

The figure standing mummiform, wearing tripartite wig and beard of Osiris,holding the hoe and pick, seed basket over the left shoulder. A frontal T-column of hieroglyphs and a back pillar to the rear. A particularly fine Egyptian shabti with beautiful facial features.

The shabti was a funerary figure, placed in the tombs of wealthy individuals that, on account of its human appearance and hieroglyphic text identifying it, would fool the gods into thinking that the shabti was the deceased. This was important as all ancient Egyptians might be required to perform menial manual labour in the afterlife if summoned. It thus became common practice among the highly religious and superstitious elite to place these figures in their burial chambers, that could be substituted for themselves if need be. A spell was written on the shabti (as shown on this figure) so that it would awaken as planned, this is the \'shabti spell\' from chapter six of the Book of the Dead and reads as follows:

\"O shawabti, if [name of deceased] is called upon,
If he is appointed to do any work which is done on the necropolis,
Even as the man is bounden, namely to cultivate the fields,
To flood the river-banks or to carry the sand of the East to the West,
And back again, then \'Here am I!\' you shall say\"

Height: 41/2 inches.

Condition: Unrestored, minor chips as shown. Good overall condition.

Provenance: From a private English West Country collection.

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