Shabti

Artwork is in the public domain. Image courtesy of the Ruth and Elmer Museum of Art at Hamilton…

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Images(2)

Artist/Maker Unknown artist

Datec. 1070-656 B.C.E.

MediumClay

DimensionsOverall: 3 in. × 7/8 in. × 5/8 in. (7.6 × 2.2 × 1.5 cm)

Credit LineGift of William C. Winslow, Class of 1862

Object number1943.122c

Not on view

DescriptionAs conceived by Ancient Egyptians, the afterlife was not much different from life on earth, although one never had to worry about illness or death. A highly valued facet of Egyptian life–and therefore afterlife–was labor. In the afterlife, this meant that everyone was expected to toil in fields of reeds called Aaru for Osiris, the god of death. Although in the predynastic and early dynastic eras, lasting from around 5500 to 2700 BCE, the pharaoh’s slaves and servants were sacrificed following his death so that they could take the pharaoh's place in the Aaru, this cruel practice seems to have been relatively unpopular and consequently faded away. In its place, the Book of the Dead provided a spell for calling forth shabtis–mummiform figurines with painted or carved symbols and features–to take one’s place in the Aaru. The earliest shabtis were unclothed and made of wax or wood; later, they were made of clay and faience and were clothed in garments tailored to specific agricultural tasks (for example, some had satchels to collect the harvest, while others had sickles and hoes). While the poorest of Ancient Egyptians could not afford to be buried with any shabti figures, most tombs contain at least a few shabtis, although usually of poorer quality than those that might be found in a pharaoh's tomb; for those who could afford it, a single tomb could hold over 400 shabti (written by Christina Naston, Class of 2020). Brownish white figure, head dress, arms crossed, part of foot broken off. Catalogue card from 1960s: "4 clay ushabtis coated with blue wash. Egyptian, XXI-XXVth Dyns. Gift of: W.C. Winslow '62. Red clay; turquoise blue wash largely turned buff. Front moulded; back flat to concave. Hands crossed. Tools indistinct."