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  From indinickycat

31st March 2006

 

Could anyone help me out with narrowing down the possible age of a rather unusual ushabti I own?

 

I bought it from a well know and trusted gallery, so it's authenticity is not in question, but the combination of the bright blue faience and the style has been throwing several people off their game.

Their best interpretation was that the style seemed earlier (more Napatan), but the quality of the faience, since this piece is such a glassy blue, Ptolemaic, or even Meroitic.

It's quite sizable, measures: 98.13mm (3.86") tall. 

It's restored at the neck and toe.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

I even sent in some pics to the British Museum and they replied:

"An intruiging piece, I agree. The following comments are necessarily provisional, as they are based on observations of the photographs rather than the object itself.

The colour of the glaze does suggest a date in the early Third Intermediate Period, and the lack of a back pillar or base precludes it post-dating this era. However, the form of the wig is very strange. From the front it looks like a bag wig, whereas at the rear it takes more the form of the royal nemes-wig. It is not a type of wig found on the many thousands of Third Intermediate Period shabtis that survive.

The proportions of the body are also rather perplexing, and don't correlate well with most shabtis of the Third Intermediate Period. The head seems rather out of proportion with the rest of the body, and the division is unsualu, with a very marked 'neck'.

As such, one would have to call into question whether the object is indeed ancient."

 

Very unusual indeed.

I would never have thought Thrid Intermediate Period.

Compare the faince and the very short lappets with these Meroitic shabtis.

 




 

These are from the Petrie Museum in London.

Found at Nuri.

 

 





 

 From Tim

1st April 2006

I agree TIP, this type of glaze seems fine to me for 21st dynasty but is unusual for this style of shabti, I've not seen this combination of the two before.  Plenty of bright blue glazes like this in the Deir el-Bahari cache II pieces.  Is that a Uraeus on the forehead?  This would fit with a Nemes wig if it were a royal shabti, though one would expect some glyphs if that were the case!  The royal power base of the 21st dynasty was in the north of Egypt and one would not expect a royal shabti to have such a Southern Style.

 

from Miguel

 

I agree with Tim -it's a TIP shabti. I doubt it comes from Napata, as the glaze is fairly different. Considering the style, it should be 22D/25D. I own a couple of shabtis with a similar glazing coat and features (hands fist to fist, just one hoe, but no bag wig).

 

from indinickysat

So, it looks like the general consensus is leaning towards TIP at the moment. That's about 600 years older than I originally thought so that's very interesting to hear.

Do you think you can upload a few pictures of those shabti's of yours with the similar glazing/features? I'm very interested in seeing them.

 

 


 

    From indinickycat

3rd April 2006

 

The saga continues. I'm pestering everyone I can think of at the moment for thoughts and I got a few more. This shabti sure takes the pize for being "most entertaining", that's for sure!

I've attached another pic where the "thing" on it's forehead is a little more clear, but it's still puzzling :-)

 

 

 

From the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

The ushabti in the picture looks vaguely familiar to me, but I have not found one in our collection like it, although I have only had time to have a quick look.  The bright blue glaze is very typical of ushabtis of the 21st/22nd dynasties.

 

 

    From Miguel.

I'm really intrigued about that *something* on the head. I cannot give

a clear opinion on that, but it definitely looks like an uraeus. The

fact that this shabti could wear an uraeus is pretty puzzling,

considering 22D/23D royal shabtis are stylistically different.

It would fit the pattern of some royal 25D Napatan shabtis, but the

glazing coat would be very unusual, as the ones known are normally

made of pale green grey faience. Anyway, I know of a royal Napatan

shabti with a marvellous blue faience. Some royal Napatan shabtis

are uninscribed.

 

From the Ashmolean Museum

 April 4th 2006

The pictures you sent show a glazed faience shabti which looks to be in the style of a 3rd IP figure, with typical colouring, but  the size (also usually typical ) is not apparent from the pictures - and any inscription, which would  help to date the figure and also perhaps suggest a  locality, is not visible. Ushabtis of this period have been found in both Lower and Upper Egypt.

 

  From indinickycat

18th April 06

 

Hi Bron,

I had another comment on my shabti, one more for the books. I especially like the comments on the wig/headcloth. Having a royal shabti would be more than anyone bairgained for, but I love reading the ideas and interpretations, it's a real learning experience.

Cheers,

 

    From the RMO, Leiden. April 14th:

I'm not getting any further than my colleagues of the British Museum, the Fitzwilliam or the Ashmolean. Looking at the colour of the faience I'm also thinking Third Intermediate Period. The headcloth is strange, but I'm not seeing how it could have the tail of a nemes, it rather ends with a horizantal line (which is fairly normal). A headcloth with short lappets at the front (like a chat cloth) is not common, but there are shabtis in the Third Intermediate Period that come close.

Whether the indistinct shape on the forehead should be interpreted as a n uraeus seems unlikely. In short, likely real, but of unusual shape.

 

 

 

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