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This striking ushabti dates to the 26th dynasty,
which is notable for being the last indigenous
dynasty prior to the conquest by Persia in 525-4
BC. The period was characterised by strife as the
Assyrians, Babylonians and the Lydians – and
even Greece and Caria – became involved in a
power struggle to control Egypt, to reunify her
and to resist imperial advances. Reunification
was achieved under Psammetichus I, although
Egyptian imperial power was not what it had
been. Once Nineveh fell in 612 BC, Egypt’s
attempts to reassert her dominion in the Middle
East failed at the hands of the Persian king
Cambyses, who took the last king –
Psammetichus III – to Susa in irons.
Despite these upheavals, however, Egyptian
religion and funerary practice did not
significantly alter. The pomp and ceremony that
characterised Old Kingdom interments had been
perpetuated, burying representations of
assistants, animals and all the other
accoutrements one might need for the hereafter
with the deceased. Ushabtis are perhaps the
best-known of these grave goods. Ushabti can
be translated as “the answerer,” a term directly
related to its function in the afterlife. Initially,
only one ushabti was interred with the deceased,
but by the New Kingdom, it became the custom
to inter hundreds of ushabti to act as slaves,
much as their human counterparts did in the real
world. The number of figures, and the materials
from which they were made, depended on the
individual's wealth.
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 labour 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, as in the current case. This elegant
ushabti holds two flails, one in each hand. It is
bound as a mummy, with headwear and artificial
beard in position. Blue and green faience –
essentially modelled glass- were prized and
valuable materials, considered worthy even for
kings. This piece was therefore intended for an
elite interment. The design is slim and well-
modelled, with a sensitive and serene face,
carefully-incised hair and the hieroglyphics
clearly visible across the front of the figure. It
stands upon an integral pedestal base which
extends up the back to the level of the
shoulders. This is an exceptionally fine example
of a faience ushabti, which would complement
any serious collection of Egyptian antiquities.
- (PF.9100 (LSO))
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