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Egyptian Antiquities :
Egyptian Ushabtis : Faience Ushabti of the 26th Dynasty
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Faience Ushabti of the 26th Dynasty - PF.1151
Origin: Sakhara, Egypt
Circa: 664
BC
to 525
BC
Dimensions:
4.75" (12.1cm) high
x 1.5" (3.8cm) wide
Collection: Egyptian
Style: Late Dynastic Period
Medium: Faience
Additional Information: SOLD
$2,500.00
Location: United States
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| Description |
Perhaps no single object epitomizes the
spirit of ancient Egypt better than the
ushabti. Shaped like a divine mummy, the
ushabti evokes the magical side of
Egyptian belief in an afterlife. The two
hoes clutched in the hands and the
basket carried on the back recall the
rural, agrarian culture of the land. The
word ushabti (supplanting the older term
shawabti) literally means "the
answerer." The function of these little
figures is described in Chapter VI of
the Book of the Dead: "O this Ushabti!
If (the deceased) is called upon to do
hard labor in the hereafter, say thou: I
am here." The ushabti was expected to
answer the call to work in place of the
deceased, and this passage was
frequently inscribed on the figures
themselves. Originally, a single ushabti
was placed in any given tomb. But by the
New Kingdom the statues had come to be
regarded as servants and slaves for the
deceased, rather than as a substitute.
Many have been found buried together,
along with an overseer figure. In the
course of Egyptian history, ushabti were
created from wood, stone, metal and
faience. In the cultural renaissance of
the XXVIth Dynasty (Saite period), a
green faience, the color of the Nile and
evocative of the verdant landscape in
springtime, was particularly popular. To
look upon an ushabti is to come face to
face with the mystery and magic of Egypt
itself.
- (PF.1151)
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