Bidspirit auction | COLLECTION OF EGYPTIAN FAIENCE USHABTIS

COLLECTION OF EGYPTIAN FAIENCE USHABTIS - Late Period to Ptolemaic Period, Ca. 664 - 30 BC. A collection of five faience ushabtis, each moulded in a simplified mummiform shape. All figures exhibit lightly defined facial features, a tripartite wig, and a false beard. Arms are crossed over the chest, holding a pick and hoe - agricultural tools symbolising the ushabtis? role in performing manual labour in the afterlife on behalf of the deceased. Bodies are columnar and taper towards a small base. The reverse sides are plain and flat. For similar see: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Object Number: 74.51.4495. Size: 60-65mm x 15-20mm; Weight: 50g Provenance: From the collection of a London gentleman; formerly acquired in early 2000s; previously in 1970s UK collection. Reviewed by Simone Musso, consultant curator for Egyptian antiquities at the Stibbert Museum, Florence, Italy, member of the Nuri Archaeological Expedition.