Volume II Plate 76 - Tomb artifacts (painted figurines and wood carvings) ~ Ushabtis, also called shawabtis or shabtis, first appeared on the ancient Egyptian scene in the Middle Kingdom sometime around 2000 B.C.E. Ushabtis are small funerary figurines, usually measuring 10 centimeters or taller, that were buried with a person in order to act as a worker in the afterworld in place of the deceased.
These highly stylized burial figurines commonly depict a body prepared in the traditional Egyptian way, with its arms crossed holding Egyptian artifacts and a head piece adorning the face of the ushabti. . While most of these small statuettes bear the personalized artistic conventions of the region they were produced in, they almost always include one or several spells from the Book of the Dead, with or without some notes on the name of the deceased.
Framed 35 1/2 inches x 28 inches ~ $2,300