engleski

Shabtis: Ancient Egyptian funerary figurines

Shabtis usually date from the First Intermediate period till the dusk of Ancient Egyptian religion at the end of 4th c. AD. Shabtis changed their shapes, form, texts and position of agricultural implements a lot through out history. These changes were classified in various typologies during 20th century (L. Speleers (1923), W. M. F. Petrie (1935), and J. F. Aubert (1974) but almost all of them classified them until the end of Late period (30th dynasty). By the time of Ptolemaic dynasty shabtis main role almost disappear and since then they became one of the main cultic symbols of Isaic cults (Isis, Osiris, Serapis etc.) which first spread all over East Mediterranean, North Africa and South East Europe and later during Roman Empire to the north to the limes of Empire and beyond. Shabtis were trade as Egyptian cult symbol ; they were manufactured in Egypt but also in workshops in various cultic centres in Roman provinces. These shabtis are not the same so they need to be classified according form, decorations, headdress, implements, text and position of text, and material from which they were crafted (stone, pottery, glass, faience, wood etc.). In my paper I will present classification (typology) of shabtis from Late and Graeco-Roman periods and their new main role – Isaic cult symbol and symbol of Ancient Egyptian religion and beliefs. According my long study of these diffusion and its findings I will also give my own opinion why shabtis from Graeco-Roman period should not be classified as fakes.

shabtis, Graeco-Roman period, classifications (typologies), production, “ancient fakes”

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