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Egyptian Antiquities :
Moulds : Clay mould for the production of mummiform Ushabtis with Isis
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Clay mould for the production of mummiform Ushabtis with Isis - ES.7166
Origin: Egypt
Circa: 664
BC
to 525
BC
Dimensions:
8" (20.3cm) high
x 4" (10.2cm) wide
x 1.7" (4.3cm) depth
Medium: Clay
Condition: Very Fine
£6,000.00
Location: Great Britain
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| Description |
Clay mould for the production of mummiform Ushabtis with the goddess Isis. Ushabtis were funerary figurines
placed in tombs among the grave goods and were intended to act as substitutes for the deceased, should he be
called upon to do the manual labour in the afterlife. They were used from the Middle Kingdom (around 1900 BC)
until the end of the Ptolemaic Period, nearly 2000 years later.
Ushabtis were believed to magically animate after the dead had been judged, and work for the dead person as a
substitute labourer in the field of Osiris. This is why they sometimes carry hoes, to execute the hard manual
labours mentioned in Chapter VI of the Book of the Dead: “whether it be to plough the fields, or to fill the
channels with water, or to carry sand from the East to the West”. Moulds are exceedingly rare, as they can be
found only in the original ancient workshops, were they would have been used to make the high number of
statuettes needed to fill the space around the sarcophagus in the burial chamber. Moulds for the production of
Ushabtis are part of the most important collection of Egyptian antiquities in the world, including the Museum of
Cairo and the Egyptian Museum of Turin. A positive is provided along with the purchase of a mould.
- (ES.7166)
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