Hi David,
Shabti/ushabti is a specialized
field and beyond me; nevertheless, here is my two cents.
1. From the photos you attached, I cannot tell if this item is actually ancient. I am not saying it is a fake/reproduction, but everything that is unfamiliar to me becomes suspect, especially when or if my
money is concerned.
2. "
Faience" when used to describe a ceramic ware dating to ancient times is much misused. The ancient Egyptians and
Greeks made
faience as did cultures in the
Levant. How "true
faience" was made is
still a mystery; scientists and fakers have been trying to discover the secret for over 100 years, without much
success. Besides
faience, the ancient Egyptians made blue fruit (
Egyptian Blue, patte de verre) and various compositions ranging from mud to quartz sand.
Your
shabti is brown/tan in color on my monitor. Does the surface show any traces of green glaze? Green glaze tends to fade to brown; blue-green fades to tan; and, blue fades to white. Is the surface hard or porous? Is the surface
fine and smooth or is it rough with the marks made by
plant matter that was incinerated during the firing process? All of these substances, except blue frit(?) were used to make
shabti. You have to determine whether yours is true
faience or composition. When all else fails call it "composition", or "Glazed composition". Is yours glazed? Is the surface hard and shiny. Even glazed
faience can deteriorate to a matte surface or become chalky.
3. I think the presence of a
column running up the back of your shanti should
help date it, a little. I forget its significance.
4. The
inscription uses real hieroglyphs but remember ignorant workers were also making
shabti in ancient times.
5. An excellent starting place for
shabti, in general, is:
Petrie, W.M.F.
Shabtis,
London, 1935. It was re-printed in 1974. I don't know if it is available on line.
Auto correct is running amok, trying to correct words it does not recognize, so please, excuse its errors that I missed.
I
hope this helps.
Russ