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Datec. 1550-30 BCE
MediumFaience
DimensionsOverall: 1 × 1/2 × 1/4 in. (2.5 × 1.3 × 0.6 cm)
Credit LineGift of William C. Winslow, Class of 1862
Object number1943.169
Not on view
DescriptionAmulets portraying deities, animals, objects, and symbols served protective purposes for both the living and the dead. Many were worn on necklaces and rings to transfer positive properties directly to their wearers. Amulets of the protective deity Bes were frequently worn by women for protection during pregnancy and childbirth. Bes, the protector of women and children, is represented in art and amulets as a dwarf with a lion’s mane, ears, and tail, and wearing a feathered headdress. Bes amulets were most common during the Late and Ptolemaic Periods (ca. 664 – 30 BCE). (Written by Kayley Boddy '22)
Faience Amulet of Bes, turquoise glaze, now white; three plumes on head pierced crosswise. Both faces show frontal view of Bes.
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