Phot. Wojciech Wojciechowski/PCMA
In the Late Period, the deceased were often equipped with various items to make their afterlife safer and easier. The statuette represents a syncretic deity that combines features of three gods: Ptah – the patron of artists and craftsmen, Osiris – god of rebirth and afterlife, and Sokar – protector of the Saqqara cemetery (it is most likely from his name that most probably the site’s modern name derives).
The deity is represented as a mummiform figure with a blue wig and a crown composed of two ostrich feathers and solar disk supported by ram’s horns. Such statuettes are often hollowed out, to contain a papyrus scroll.