Egypt, Third Intermediate period, 21st to 22nd Dynasty, ca. 1069 to 720 BCE. A remarkable pottery ushabti coated in white slip with black-painted details and vertical hieroglyphs translating to "To illuminate the Osiris, Ankh-ef-en-khonsu." Standing mummiform atop fused legs and feet, the figure is shown holding a pair of hoes in unfolded hands that are placed atop the chest. The slightly downcast visage is comprised of characteristically huge, almond-shaped eyes beneath arched brows, all framed within the lappets of the tripartite wig crowned by a seshet hairband. Size: 1.7" W x 4" H (4.3 cm x 10.2 cm)

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.

This piece has been owned by and exhibited in the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities in Bulaq in Cairo, Egypt, the Drexel Institute Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the Minneapolis Institute of Art (16.731) in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Provenance: Collection of Dr. W. Benson Harer, Los Angeles, California, USA, acquired from Superior Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA June 9, 1975; ex-Louis Blumka collection, 1958; ex-Minneapolis Intitute of Art, 1916, accession #16.731; ex-Drexel Institute Museum, donated in 1895; ex-Bulaq Museum, Cairo, Egypt, 1894

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#180915

Professionally repaired from 2 pieces with adhesive residue along visible break line. Some expected small chips and abrasions to surface, all commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent with liberal remaining pigments.