Egyptian ushabti for Viceroy Hori
€8,850
available
Object number
AR3531
| Object: |
Egyptian ushabti for Viceroy Hori
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| Material: |
Faint green faience with black paint.
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| Period: |
1156 BC to 1150 BC, during the reign of Ramesses IV, of the 20th dynasty of ancient Egypt, New Kingdom. |
| Description: |
Egyptian funerary figure in mummy pose. It wears a tripartite wig, its hands are crossed in front of its chest, and its feet are depicted summarily. Further details are painted in black, including an agricultural implement in each hand, a seed bag on its back, a wide necklace (usekh collar), and the face. The wig is painted completely black. On the front is a column of hieroglyphs within a frame reading: The illuminated, the Osiris, the king’s son of Kush, the scribe, Hori |
| Background: |
The owner of this ushabti, Hori I, was viceroy or governor under the pharaohs Ramesses III and IV. He administered the southern region of Nubia (Kush). The title "king's son" mentioned in the inscription is an official title. Biologically, Hori was the son of Kama of Bubastis.
For further information on the ushabtis of Hori, we refer to the very well-compiled study by Niek de Haan, in which this example is also described (see list of publications). According to de Haan, a total of 30 shabtis of Hori are known, 12 of which are in private collections. The availability of one of these statuettes on the art market is therefore a great rarity.
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| Dimensions: |
10.8cm high, 3.1cm wide.
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| Condition: |
Very well preserved, the body and paintwork are almost complete. There is a chip on the back of the head, as well as repaired chips on the feet. Stabilized cracks or inconspicuous joints on the front. The black paintwork is slightly rubbed, but overall clearly visible. The statuette cannot stand on its own.
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| Provenance: |
Acquired by us in 2023 on the US art market. Previously in the US family collection of Dr. W. Benson Harer. Acquired into the collection at the Sotheby Parke-Bernet New York auction 13 December 1979, lot 85. Previously owned by Dr. Elizabeth Khayat. From the tomb of Hori at Tell Basta, Egypt, the ancient city of Bubastis in the eastern Nile Delta. The shabti was presumably recovered from the tomb in 1944. Dr. W. Benson Harer is an American physician and renowned art collector specializing in ancient Egyptian antiquities. His passion for Egyptian culture led to the creation of one of the most important collections of ancient Egyptian artworks. A large portion of the family collection is now on permanent loan to the Robert and Frances Fullerton Museum of Art (RAFFMA) at California State University, USA. The Harer family also funds a professorship at California State University to promote the teaching of ancient Egyptian history and culture by renowned Egyptologists. Further parts of the Harer collection have been circulated back into the art market in recent years. For example, Christie's dedicated a separate auction to the Harer family collection in December 2005. |
| Publications: |
The statuette was part of an exhibition at the University Art Gallery of California State University (USA) from 8 January 1992, to 8 March 1992, in collaboration with the San Bernardino County Museum (USA). Illustrated and described in the accompanying exhibition catalog, Gerry D. Scott, Temple, Tomb, and Dwelling: Egyptian Antiquities from the Harer Family Trust Collection (1992), pp. 202–203, no. 151. Described in the Sotheby Parke Bernet (New York) catalogue "Important ancient and Islamic glass, classical, egyptian and near eastern antiquities", 13 December 1979, lot 85. Recorded in the study by Niek de Haan, The shabtis of the King’s Son of Kush Hori (2019), p. 12, no. 8. |
| References: |
Cf. J. F. Aubert und L. Aubert, Statuettes égyptiennes: Chaouabtis, Ouchebtis (Paris, 1974), plate 40, fig. 95 and 96. Cf. H. D. Schneider, Shabtis, Part II (Leiden, 1977), no. 3.3.0.5. Cf. University of Memphis, Institute of Egyptian Art & Archaeology, acc. no. 1989.3.3. |
| Literature: |
A good introduction and overview on Egyptian ushabtis in just one volume is given by Glenn Janes in Shabtis: A Private View - Ancient Egyptian Funerary Statuettes in European Private Collections.
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| Authenticity: |
We unconditionally guarantee the authenticity of every artefact, all items are subject to our lifetime return policy on authenticity.
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