Light blue faience shabti of Paynefernefer with details in black paint. Details include a tripartite wig with fillet, a short beard in relief, arms crossed on chest holding a long pick and a hoe, and a basket on back. Two columns of hieroglyphs down front in black read 'The Osiris, the scribe of the temple of Amun, Paynefernefer, true of voice'.

Inscriptions / Translations:  'The Osiris, the scribe of the temple of Amun, Paynefernefer, true of voice'.

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 mummiform shabti comes from the, as yet unlocated, burial of a scribe of the temple of Amun, Paynefernefer. It is made from faience with a blue glaze, with the details and inscription picked out in black. The shabti's design conforms to Aston's 'Type E' with crossed hands, no beard, and a solid, unpainted wig with a headband (the seshed headband), also visible on Masaharta A's shabti (ECM 399). This type is dated to Masaharta A's tenure as High Priest of Amun, suggesting that Paynefernefer's burial should be dated to around the same time, approximately 1054-1045 BCE. This would have made him quite old at his death as he is attested in his post over thirty years earlier from a letter dated to the early years of the 'renaissance' (wHm-mswt) during the reign of Ramesses XI.

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