Description
Name owner: –
Title owner: The Osiris, the Wab-Priest, The writer (?), the Wab-priest of the House of Amun
Dimensions (hxwxd): 10.6 x 4.0 x 3.3 cm
Translation hieroglyphs: The Osiris, the Wab-Priest, The writer (?), the Wab-priest of the House of Amun
Preservation: Excellent
R-R: 9.11
Provenance: Ex Austrian auction 2007, ex Anubis Ancient Art, currently in a Dutch collection.
Comments:
The name Ii-mi-Seba means “He who appears like a star”. The are two individuals known from the TIP period according to Araujo’s study (page 397). The shabtis of only one of them are published by Valbelle coming from Deir el Medina, nr. 111 page 47. Upon the excavations 111 fragments were recorded and only one complete one. The inscriptions of the published shabtis contain various titles including writer and overseer of the House of Amun. The published photo in Valbelle is for a worker type so a certain attribution of this overseer can not be made. However, in view of the matching titles and name i am inclined to believe it is quite likely that they are for the same individual.
However, please note that a tomb in Thebes on the far west bank, at Sheikh abd El-Qurna, number 65 was usurped by a Ii-mi-Seba as well (tomb was originally for Nebamun, from the period of Ramesses IX). His, Ii-mi-seba’s titles in KV 65 include Head of the temple scribes of the estate of amun (see Porter/Moss, Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs and Paintings, 1, The Theban Necropolis, page 129). Could this be the same individual? Possibly. Of further interest is that Amenemope, from Dra Abu’l Naga, Tomb number 148 mentions as father Ii-mi-seba. Is this the same person? As the tomb is also in Thebes, it could indicate that they are related. Also the similar way the wig is striated painted could indicate a relationsship (note for example the similary in the shabtis of Henuttawy A and her Daughter Maatkara and many other examples from this period). However, this material is for now too circumstancial to contribute the tomb and “son” Amenope to the shabti of Ii-mi-seba as published here.
This overseer is from an excellent quality. The text seems rather quickly written which makes the reading difficult. After the Osiris title (Asir) follows the Wab priest title follow some extra glyphs that could represent the writer hieroglyph. After follows another Wab-Priest title and like the waterline N sign which means in this context “of”. The second vertical column of the shabti starts with Imn-Per, House of Amun followed by the name and True of Voice.
