Bright blue faience shabti of Masaharta A with details painted in black. The arms are crossed on the chest and hold agricultural implements. The details in black include a tripartite wig, a headband, a basket and vertical column of hieroglyphs on the front that read: 'Illuminating the Osiris, Masaharta'.
Bibliography: For more information, see E. Mushett Cole 2016 'Some Significant Shabtis: How objects can illuminate a period of political and cultural change' in S. Boonstra (ed.) Objects Come to Life Virtual Exhibition, Birmingham Egyptology.
Notes: The blue faience mummiform shabti is recorded as coming from the Second Royal Burial cache in Theban Tomb 320, where Masaharta A's mummy was found. This was not his original tomb, with this coffin and clearly some burial good transferred to the royal cache at some point between his burial and it being sealed for the last time around Year 11 of Sheshonq I's reign. Again, the shabti conforms to Aston's 'Type E', with the distinctive sheshed headband distinguishing it from other, earlier types. Not only was Masaharta High Priest of Amun, but was also one of the earliest high officials to have a purely Libyan name, with only a few of Herihor's children predating him and none of them held a position as powerful as High Priest of Amun.
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