amulet;
figure
- Description
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Mould-made amuletic figure in glazed composition, representing the dwarf leonine god Bes; naked, in a squatting position on a rectangular base, with arms on his thighs and leaning against a back pillar; wearing his characteristic plumed crown; very roughly made; crude features with a few incised details; two suspension holes pierced widthways in the back pillar, one behind the headdress, the other behind the legs; pale green glaze quite well preserved; almost complete, upper suspension hole chipped on the left side.
- Production date
- 664 BC - 332 BC
- Dimensions
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Height: 2.60 centimetres
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Length: 0.80 centimetres
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Width: 1.15 centimetres
- Curator's comments
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Object owned and held by World Museum, Liverpool. This record is included in the British Museum database as part of the Museum’s Naukratis Project, a research collaboration that aims to virtually re-unite finds from the ancient port city of Naukratis, now distributed over 80 museums worldwide.
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As other deities involved in the protection of childhood and pregnancy, such as Taweret and Pataikos, Bes is very popular among Naukratis amulets (Masson forthcoming). His amulets were similarly widespread across Egypt in the later Dynastic period (Andrews 1994, 40) and in the Mediterranean world, (especially in the Late-early Ptolemaic periods: Herrmann et al., 69).
On amulets of Bes in general see: Andrews 1994, 38-40; Herrmann et al. 2010, 69-73 (type 34).
Andrews, C. 1994, Amulets of Ancient Egypt, London.
Herrmann, C., Staubli, T., Berger-Lober, S., Keel, O., Schönbächler, G. 2010, 1001 Amulett : altägyptischer Zauber, monotheisierte Talismane, säkulare Magie, Bibel+Orient-Museum, Liebefeld, Stuttgart.
Masson, A. forthcoming, ‘Naukratis: Egyptian offerings in context’, in M. Bergeron and A. Masson (eds.), Naukratis in Context II: Cults, Sanctuaries and Offerings. Proceedings of the Second Naukratis Project Workshop held at The British Museum, 22nd-23rd June 2013.
- Location
- Not on display
- Condition
- Fair, slightly chipped
- Acquisition date
- 1886
- Department
- External
- Additional IDs
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Miscellaneous number: 9,9,86,67 (Accession Number)