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Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) · statue

Shabti of Mesu

Source of record: Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access) — catalogued by the holding institution. View the original record →

Description

New Kingdom, Ramesside, Dynasty 19, reign of Ramesses II, ca. 1279–1213 B.C. Limestone, paint. H. 15 cm (5 7/8 in). From: Tomb of Sennedjem (TT 1), Deir el-Medina, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Egypt. Excavation: Egyptian Antiquities Service/Maspero excavations, 1885–86. Subject: Hieroglyphs. Credit: Funds from various donors, 1886.

AI image analysis GPT-5.4-nano

Machine-generated from the object's image on Jul 2026. Not curatorial; treat deities, names, and signs below as the model's best reading, not authority.

Limestone shabti figure in standing pose, with wig/hat, arms crossed on the chest, and a vertical column of painted hieroglyphs on the torso.

The object is a small standing funerary figurine (shabti) carved in pale stone and now appears with traces of black-painted surface detail. The figure has a stylized tripartite wig/hood and a simplified face with almond-shaped eyes. The arms are held forward across the body, hands resting near the midline. Beneath the arms is a vertical register/column of hieroglyphic signs painted in black, running from the upper torso down toward the base; the signs are arranged in stacked rows but are not fully legible at this resolution. The lower section includes additional painted marks consistent with shabti text; no clear cartouche is visible. Small metallic-looking elements at the sides near the shoulders/upper torso may be modern supports or mountings rather than original attachments. No Greek/Coptic/Arabic text is visible.

funerary New Kingdom, Ramesside period (consistent with catalogue designation for shabti from Deir el-Medina); exact dynasty/king not determinable from the image. good
Materials limestone (carved body)paint (black painted hieroglyphs)possibly metal mountings/supports (gold/brass-colored)
Signs Vertical column of painted hieroglyphs (stacked signs; likely personal name/inscription for a shabti) ×20
Visible text "Unclear/partially legible stacked hieroglyphs; no reliable reading of the name 'Mesu' or any royal cartouche can be confirmed from this image alone."

Connections

Found at Deir el-Medina
Materials Limestone

Cross-references (4)

  • Wikidata-Q Q116245152 tier-1
  • Collection-QID Q160236 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • Inventory-Number 86.1.28 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
  • MET-Object 545149 tier-2 (wikidata-mediated)
About this record's data
  • From the source institution — accession, description, dimensions, and dating are as catalogued by Metropolitan Museum of Art — Egyptian Art (Open Access).
  • AI-inferred — the image-analysis panel (deities, names, signs) is machine-generated and may be wrong.
  • Approximate location — most map points are plotted at the site centroid, not the exact findspot.
  • Inferred links — cross-references marked with a match method other than explicit-source-field were matched by us, not stated by the source.