Page:A History of Art in Ancient Egypt Vol 1.djvu/236

 146 A History of Art in Ancient Egypt. dynasty, and the sixth chapter of the Book of the Dead, which is engraved upon them, seems to be one of the most ancient. Egypt- tologists are now inchned to beheve that the essential parts of this ritual date back as far as the Memphite period. These statuettes are of different sizes and materials. As a rule they do not exceed from eight to twelve inches, but there are a few which are three feet or more in height. Some are in wood, some in limestone, and some in granite, but as a rule they are made of that kind of terra cotta which, when covered with green or blue enamel, has been called Egyptian porcelain. They are like a mummy in appearance ; their hands are crossed Fig. 94. — Labourers heaping up ears of corn, from a tomb at Gizeh. {Description de VEgyptf.) upon the breast and hold instruments of agriculture such as hoes and picks, and a sack meant for grain hangs from their shoulders. The meaning of all this is to be sought in the Egyptian notions of a future life ; it is also explained by the picture in chapter XC. of the Ritual, which shows us the dead tilling, sowing and harvesting In the fields of the other world. The texts of the Ritual and of certain inscriptions call these little figures oushebti or answerers from the verb ousJieb, to answer. It is therefore easy the most brilliant fashion, which served to hold these statues when they were placed in the tomb. The size and the richness of their ornament depended upon the wealth of the deceased for whom they were made.