The photograph could not be loaded
Documented object · Ancient Egypt
Shabti from the tomb of Sennedjem
An uninscribed limestone figurine found in the tomb of Sennedjem at Deir el-Medina in the excavations of 1885-86. The museum dates it to the reign of Ramesses II and displays it in Gallery 126.
Date as given by the sourceca. 1290-1224 BCEAs worded by the source: ca. 1290-1224 BCE; New Kingdom, Ramesside, Dynasty 19, reign of Ramesses II
What you see
What the object is
A limestone figurine 22.5 cm high in the form of a wrapped human figure, of the type called a shabti (or ushabti): a figure placed in the tomb to take the dead person's place in the labours of the afterlife. The record notes that this shabti is uninscribed. The photograph is the museum's own collection image (public domain, CC0), shown without cropping or colour change. Source 1.
What the record says
The record dates the shabti "ca. 1290-1224 BCE", to the New Kingdom, Ramesside period, Dynasty 19, reign of Ramesses II. The findspot is detailed: Thebes, Deir el-Medina, Tomb of Sennedjem (TT 1), Egyptian Antiquities Service/Maspero excavations of 1885-86. The record adds that other objects in the collection were discovered in the same tomb. The shabti was acquired in 1886 and is on view in Gallery 126.
An object for the afterlife
A shabti is an object placed with the dead, not a remain of the dead. The distinction matters to this site: it shows tomb objects and reports what the record says about them, and it does not show human remains. The article on human remains in museums explains that distinction through the British Museum's written policy, and the trail "Objects for the afterlife" connects the shabti, the scarab from Lisht and the article.
Its place on the timeline
"New Kingdom" is a period in the chronology of Egypt, about 1550 to 1070 BCE according to the museum's curatorial chronology. Source 2. In the site's period scheme for Egypt, which follows that chronology, the shabti is placed in the New Kingdom by the period name in its record.
Where it is now
Held by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, record 86.1.23. On 22 October 2026 the record stated "On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 126".
The object's connections
The object's connections
Culture, period, place, type and holder: every connection comes from the record or a cited source.
Object
Shabti from the tomb of Sennedjem
Period
- The New Kingdom of Egypt: Memphis and ThebesPer the museum
Region
Displayed at
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New YorkGallery 126, The Met Fifth Avenue
On the trail
Source
Sources and further reading
The research and references behind this page. Rights to external content remain with their owners.
- 1
Shabti, Tomb of Sennedjem (TT 1), collection record 86.1.23
The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Checked
- 2
Egypt, 2000–1000 B.C. (Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, chronology)
The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Checked