SHABTI OF AMENWAHSU
Steatite
19th Dynasty, about 1295-1186 BC

In the later 18th Dynasty there was a move away from the fashion of depicting the dead as mummies and towards representing them as living beings dressed in formal clothes. This led to the creation of coffins, sarcophagi and shabtis in this form, although the more traditional shrouded image continued to be used at the same time. This shabti of the Overseer of the Granary, Amenwahsu, exemplifies this trend. He wears the curled double wig and the pleated kilt with prominent apron that were fashionable dress for high officials at the time. His arms and legs are free from the confining mummy-wrappings. He holds a hoe in each hand and has a grain-basket slung over his left shoulder.

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