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Shawabty
Egyptian
New Kingdom, late Dynasty 18–20
1390–1070 B.C.
Medium/Technique
Wood
Dimensions
Height x width: 19 x 6.3 cm (7 1/2 x 2 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Hay Collection—Gift of C. Granville Way
Accession Number72.4089
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAncient Egypt, Nubia and the Near East
ClassificationsTomb equipment – Shawabties and shawabty boxes
DescriptionThis wooden shawabty retains traces of white priming. It depicts a mummiform figure wearing a tripartite wig. Its arms are crossed right over left on the chest and holding implements of field work. A hoe can be made out against the left shoulder, while the object at right is indistinct. A central column of incised hieroglyphic text appears on the front of the legs, identifying the owner as a "Lady/Mistress of the House." The shawabty is in heavily worn condition with slight splitting of the wood, but is otherwise intact.
An ancient Egyptian shawabty is a funerary figurine that was intended to magically animate in the Afterlife in order to act as a proxy for the deceased when called upon to tend to field labor or other tasks. This expressed purpose was sometimes written on the shawabty itself in the form of a "Shawabty Spell," of which versions of various length are known. Shorter shawabty inscriptions could also just identify the deceased by name and, when applicable, title(s). However, many shawabtys carry no text at all. The ideal number of such figurines to include in a tomb or burial seems to have varied during different time periods.
An ancient Egyptian shawabty is a funerary figurine that was intended to magically animate in the Afterlife in order to act as a proxy for the deceased when called upon to tend to field labor or other tasks. This expressed purpose was sometimes written on the shawabty itself in the form of a "Shawabty Spell," of which versions of various length are known. Shorter shawabty inscriptions could also just identify the deceased by name and, when applicable, title(s). However, many shawabtys carry no text at all. The ideal number of such figurines to include in a tomb or burial seems to have varied during different time periods.
ProvenanceBy 1836: Robert Hay Collection, Linplum, Scotland; 1863: to his son, Robert James Alexander Hay; 1868-1872: Way Collection, Boston (purchased by Samuel A. Way through London dealers Rollin and Feuardent, 27 Haymarket); 1872: given to the MFA by Samuel's son, C. Granville Way. (Accession Date: June 28, 1872)