Object Details
Collector
Joseph Hirshhorn
Donor Name
Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden
Notes
WOODEN FIGURE, PAINTED GOLD PECTORAL DECORATION, HIEROGLYPHICS ON LOWER TORSO; MOUNTED ON WOODEN BASE, BLACK AND RED PAINT REMNANTS, WHITE GESSO OR UNDERCOAT. PROVENIENCE UNDOCUMENTED. IDENTIFICATION PROVIDED BY HMSG.
Shabti is either gilded or inlaid with gold pieces forming the collar. Inscription hard to decipher - damage in critical places. Hands missing, probably made from glass. Johns Hopkins University Egyptologist Betsy Bryan interprets standard prayer, normal and proper hieroglyphic signs, but the name of the deceased wherever added is in hieratic. Dynasty XVIII - XIX.
From NMNH Exhibit Hall "Eternal Life in Ancient Egypt" label for this artifact, 2011: Shabti, 1292-1190 BC. Shabti wears wig and jewelry like living people. As a worker in the afterlife, it has broken hands that show it once carried a hoe.
Record Last Modified
30 Jul 2020
Specimen Count
1
Culture
Egyptian, New Kingdom Period
Accession Date
28 Aug 1992
Accession Number
370312
USNM Number
A553168-0
Object Type
Figurine
Length - Object
15 cm
Width - Object
8 cm
Depth - Object
5 cm
Place
Not Given, Egypt (not certain), Africa (not certain)
See more items in
Anthropology
Data Source
NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
Topic
Archaeology
Link to Original Record
Record ID
nmnhanthropology_8503984