Egyptian Ushabti
What are some interesting facts about Ushabti?
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The ushabti (also called shabti or shawabti, with a number of variant spellings) were funerary figurines used in Ancient Egypt. They were placed in tombs among the grave goods and were intended to act as substitutes for the deceased, should he/she be called upon to do manual labor in the afterlife. They were used from the Middle Kingdom (around 1900 BC) until the end of the Ptolemaic Period nearly 2000 years later.
Most ushabtis were of minor size, and many produced in multiples – they sometimes covered the floor around a sarcophagus. Exceptional ushabtis are of larger size, or produced as a one-of-a-kind master work.
Due to the shabti’s commonness through all Egyptian timeperiods, and world museums’ desire to represent ancient Egyptian art objects, the shabti is one of the most commonly represented objects in Egyptology displays.
Etymology and usage of the terms
A shabti of the pharaoh Pinedjem I at the Brooklyn Museum.
The term shabti applies to these figures prior to the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt but after the end of the First Intermediate Period, and really only to figurines inscribed with Chapter Six of the Book of the Dead. Otherwise, they might better be defined by the generic term, funerary figurines.
The shawabti were a distinct class of funerary figurines within the area of Thebes during the New Kingdom.
The term ushabti became prevalent after the 21st Dynasty and remained in use until Ptolemaic times.
It is thought by some that the term ushabti meant “follower” or “answerer” in Ancient Egyptian, because the figurine “answered” for the deceased person and performed all the routine chores of daily life for its master[1], though it would be difficult to reconcile this derivation with the form of shawabti.[2]
Inscriptions
Shabti inscriptions often contain the 6th chapter of the Book of the Dead, translated as:
“Illumine the Osiris NN, whose word is truth. Hail, Shabti Figure! If the Osiris Ani be decreed to do any of the work which is to be done in Khert-Neter, let everything which standeth in the way be removed from him- whether it be to plough the fields, or to fill the channels with water, or to carry sand from the East to the West. The Shabti Figure replieth: “I will do it, verily I am here when thou callest”. “[3]
(Example, for NN, Akhenaten, “Osiris Akhenaten”).
In rare cases different chapters of the Book of the Dead are written. Furthermore, shabtis often mention the name and the titles of the owner, without the spells of the Book of the Dead.
Before being inscribed on funerary figurines, the spell was written on some mid-Twelfth Dynasty coffins from Bersheh (about 1850 BC) and is known today as spell 472 of the Coffin Texts.[4]
History of usage
An ushabti box at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum.
Mentioned first in spell 472 of the Coffin Texts they were included in the grave goods of the dead as small figurines since the reign of Mentuhotep II of the 11th Dynasty.[5] Some think that originally they may have symbolically replaced genuine sacrificial burials, a somewhat improbable theory as centuries had passed between the last known sacrificial burials and the appearance of the ushabtis. They were generally distinguished from other statuettes by being inscribed with the name of the deceased, his titles, and often with spell 472 of the Coffin Texts[6] or the speech of the Shabti figure found in Chapter Six of the Book of the Dead. In the 18th Dynasty during the reign of Amenhotep IV, the figurines were inscribed with an offering addressed to the sun disk, Aten, rather than the traditional speech of the Shabti figure.
The ushabti was believed to magically animate after the dead had been judged, and work for the dead person as a substitute labourer in the fields of Osiris. From the New Kingdom onwards, it was often referred to as servant.
From the 21st Dynasty on ushabtis became common and numerous in graves. In some tombs the floor was covered with a great many ushabti figurines; in others the ushabtis were neatly packed into ushabti boxes. At times 365 ushabti were placed in a deceased Ancient Egyptian’s tomb, one for each day of the year, but pharaohs had considerably more of these servants than commoners, and king Taharqa had more than a thousand.[7] Some tombs contained overseer ushabtis holding a flail, which were responsible for groups of ten ushabti each – (ten being a common administrative division, for example in the armies). These overseers became rare during the Late Period.
Modern museum shabti displays
The tomb of Tutankhamun had a “small” number of shabtis. However, the shabtis were of varying sizes, and most were ornate, with hieroglyph statements.[8] The Tutankhamun shabtis were in sub-groups; some honored Osiriform gods, gold-foiled; some were more simple of wood, or faience.
Egyptian Ushabtis
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Egyptian Servant Girls Photo Mugs Two USHABTIS – half-sized figurines placed in a pharaohs tomb ; these two represent female attendants carrying food and drink for their dead master…. |
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Ushabti of Tutankhamun, showning king wearing the red crown of the North, from Photo Mugs Ushabti of Tutankhamun, showning king wearing the red crown of the North, from the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamun, discovered in the Valley of the Kings, Thebes, Egypt, North Africa, Africa…. |
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Photo Jigsaw Puzzle of Ushabti of Tutankhamun, showning king wearing the red crown of the North, from from Robert Harding Photo Puzzle, Ushabti of Tutankhamun, showning king wearing the red crown of the North, from. Ushabti of Tutankhamun, showning king wearing the red crown of the North, from the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamun, discovered in the Valley of the Kings, Thebes, Egypt, North Africa, Africa. Chosen by Robert Harding. 10×14 Photo Puzzle with 252 pieces. Packed in black cardboard box of dimensions 5 5/8 x … |
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Shabtis: A Private View: Ancient Egyptian Funerary Statuettes in European Private Collections $135.00 This large volume presents a catalogue of 115 shabtis, or funerary statuettes, that are now held in private collections across Europe. The study stands out in particular for its high-quality lifesize colour photographs which illustrate the back and front of each shabti. The catalogue, which is arranged chronologically from the Middle Kingdom to the Ptolemaic period, includes transcriptions and tra… |
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Egyptian Shabtis (Shire Egyptology) $13.95 The ancient Egyptians believed that the statutory agricultural labour imposed on them in order to utilise the Nile floods would continue in the afterlife. To avoid this irksome duty they devised the shabti, a figure which they hoped would deputise for them on being activated by the appropriate magic spell. The figures are of considerable artistic interest, and provide information about Egyptian re… |
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Shabtis, (British school of archaeology in Egypt and Egyptian research account. Forty-first year, 1935. [Publication no. 57]) … |
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