OUSHEBTI ON BEHALF OF NEFERIBRE-SANEITH Egyptian art, Late Period, Dynasty XXVI, reign of Amasis, c. 570-526 BC Earthenware statuette, wearing a tripartite wig, standing on a quadrangular base, arms crossed, holding two ploughing implements. Nine bands of hieroglyphic inscriptions engraved on the front of chapter VI of the Book of the Dead, indicating the name of the deceased: Nefer-ib-ré-sa-neith, son of the lady Chem-(en)-bastet. Height 18.5 cm high Related bibliography : J.F. and L. Aubert, Statuettes Égyptiennes, Paris, 1974, pp.229-230 J.L. Chappaz, Les figurines funéraires égyptiennes du Musée d'Art et d'Histoire et de quelques collections privées, Genève, 1984, n°139 Source : Saqqara, south of the pyramid of Userkaf, tomb of Neferibesaneith, discovered in 1929. Dispersed by the Antiquities Department before 1970 Former private collection, Île-de-France French private collection, acquired in 2023 An Egyptian faience shabti for Neferibre-Saneith, Late Period, 26th Dynasty, reign of Amasis, circa 570-526 B.C. One of the finest examples of oushebtis from the 26th Dynasty, this extremely delicate and elegant statuette is one of 336 funerary servants found in 1929 by the English Egyptologist Cecil Mallaby Firth in the tomb of Neferibresaneith, a high-ranking official of the Saite court, born of Chepenbastet (see E. Drioton and J.P. Lauer, "Les tombes jumelées de Neferibrê-Sa-Neith et Ouahibrê-Men", Annales du Service des Antiquités de l'Égypte, vol 51, 1951, pp. 469-490). Born under Psammetichus II, our high-ranking official bore a basilophoric name referring to this sovereign, but it was during the reign of Amasis, around the middle of the 6th century, that he reached the pinnacle of his career. It was at Saqqara, south of the pyramid of Userkaf, that he found his final resting place, accompanied by his funerary servants, most of whom were assembled on the lid of the sarcophagus. "Many of these figurines, measuring between 17 and 18 cm, were dispersed by the Antiquities Department and ended up in public collections in Budapest, Florence, London and Stockholm, as well as in private collections" (Aubert, p.230). The dispersal of these funerary statuettes, prized by private collectors and public institutions for their refinement, was completed in 1970, the tomb having been largely emptied by 1940. Today, these oushebtis continue to fascinate collectors the world over, and several examples can be seen in museum collections, including the J. Paul Getty Museum, which acquired one of these servants in 2016 (2016.2), the Metropolitan Museum in New York (58.4.2) and the Museum of World Cultures in Stockholm (MME 1974:156).