Perhaps no single object epitomizes the spirit
of Ancient Egypt better than the ushabti.
Shaped like a divine mummy, the ushabti
evokes the magical side of the Egyptian belief
in an afterlife, while the two hoes clutched in
the hands recall the rural, agrarian culture of
the land. The word ushabti (supplanting the
older term shawabti) literally means “the
answerer.” The function of these little figures
is described in Chapter VI of the Book of the
Dead: “O this Ushabti! If (the deceased) is
called upon to do hard labor in the hereafter,
say thou: I am here.” The ushabti was
expected to answer the call to work in place of
the deceased, and this passage was frequently
inscribed on the figures themselves. Originally,
a single ushabti was placed in a given tomb;
but by the New Kingdom, the statues had
come to be regarded as servants and slaves for
the deceased rather than as a substitute, and
many might be found buried together, along
with an overseer figure. In the course of
Egyptian history, ushabti were created from
wood, stone, metal, and faience. In the
cultural renaissance of the XXVI Dynasty
(Saite period), a green faience, the color of the
Nile and evocative of the verdant landscape in
springtime, was particularly popular. To look
upon an ushabti is to come face to face with
the mystery and magic of Egypt itself.
- (CK.0146)
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