Baboon statuette

The statuette is a hamadryas baboon (Papio hamadryas) squatting on a narrow and thin pedestal with a richly decorated mane, i.e., mane and mantle. Its paw is resting on its knee. There are also traces of maroon and green paint on its surface. The baboon was the sacred animal and manifestation of the god Thoth. Thoth was the god of writing and the protector of scribes, so the statuette was primarily made for a scribe, who may have placed it in the sanctuary of Thoth as a votive offering, hoping for protection from the God, or kept it as an amulet. The rich decoration of the object dates it most probably to the New Kingdom.

According to the funerary concepts, on the so-called Weighing of the Heart scene, the heart of the deceased was placed on a scale, while on the other pan of the scale was the Maat feather, a symbol of justice. Meanwhile, the deceased told the “Negative Confession” of his sins he had not committed. The results of the weighing were recorded by Thoth, the scribe of the gods. If the scales did not move, the deceased could pass on to the afterlife. Therefore, the baboon statuette could even be placed in the deceased’s tomb to support him in entering the afterlife, to accomplish rebirth.