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Ushabti of Ah-mose
(Ancient Egypt and Nubia )
Ushabti (meaning "answerers"), also called "shawabti," which resemble miniature mummies, were made of different materials such as wood or Egyptian faience (ceramic-like material). These funerary statuettes represent the individual whom they accompanied into the tomb and the afterlife. If a god called on the deceased to perform labor in the afterlife, this servant substitute, magically invoked by a traditional spell, would answer and do the work on behalf of the tomb's owner.
This ushabti figure displays its owner with a long wig and a divine chin beard with a plaited pattern and curved lower end. He holds hoes for field work in his hands and has a back pillar. The inscription, which contains the "Ushabti-formula" from the sixth chapter of the "Book of the Dead," is laid out in nine rows below his arms.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
William T. / Henry Walters Collection, Baltimore; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 8/24/1979 | Examination | examined for condition |
Geographies
Egypt (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 7 1/2 in. (19.1 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, by 1931
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
48.397