A collection of over 50 ancient Egyptian objects travelled from Surrey to Swansea, and arrived at the the Egypt Centre today (31st May 2012). Items on loan include a Sokar hawk, shabti figures, two glass bottles, two amulets, a ?bell in the shape of a Bes head, pottery vessels, a papyrus or lotus shaped pendant, etc. A selection can be seen above (better pictures to follow).

The artefacts, donated by Woking College, include several shabtis (servant figurines) which the ancient Egyptians believed would do work for their deceased owners in the afterlife. One of the shabtis is an ‘overseer shabti’. Shabtis, mirroring real life work teams, were organised in gangs of 10. Each gang would be overseen by a foreman, or overseer. The shabtis are around 3,000 years old. The collection also includes a glass bottle, from late in Egyptian history (c100BC-AD200), around the time of Cleopatra.