Lot 27
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN SHABTI FOR PADINEITH ‡
EGYPT, 30TH DYNASTY, REIGN OF NECTANEBO I, C 380-360 B.C.
Auction: 26 November 2026 from 14:00 GMT
Description
faience, in mummiform pose, wearing the tripartite wig and beard, holding a pick and hoe, with a basket over the left shoulder; with hieroglyphs running along the length of the back; presented on a bespoke mount
Dimensions
14.1cm tall
Provenance
Mr & Mrs J. Axel, Paris, France; acquired 1987 in Paris
Footnote
Shabtis, known also as “answerer figures”, were placed in a tomb so the owner's spirit would not have to perform manual labour in the afterlife. They were often inscribed with chapter 6 of the Book of the Dead, the shabti text, a spell that compels the shabti to substitute itself if the owner is asked to till the fields, irrigate the land, or transport sand from east to west.