Faience Ushabti of the “Lady of the House” Inhay

Culture: Egyptian

Period: New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty, 1292–1189 B.C.

Material: Faience

Dimensions: 13.8 cm high

Price: 8 000 Euro

Ref: 1569

Provenance: Swiss collection M. E. Gern, acquired before 8 March 1984. With a copy of a commission agreement with Galerie Nefer in Zurich dated the same day.

Condition: Intact

Description: Very elegant ushabti from the New Kingdom, naming its owner as “the Lady of the House Inhay.” This title was a common designation for married women of high status. The ushabti is in the typical mummiform shape, with the arms crossed over the chest and rendered in relief. In both hands she holds hoes for agricultural work. She wears a long, black-painted tripartite wig, with two locks falling over the shoulders. A multi-row neck collar is painted between the locks. Across the back hangs a net-like bag for seed grain. The face is finely modeled, with nose and lips standing out in relief. The eyes, the long eyeliner and the curved eyebrows are also applied in black. The vertical hieroglyphic inscription begins beneath the arms and extends down to the protruding feet. The translation of the finely drawn characters reads: “The Enlightened One, Osiris, Lady of the House Inhay.“ Mounted.