Egyptain Replica - Bes - domestic protection god

                                                                                    Bes - Protective domestic god

                                                                  Dimensions - 5.5cm x 6cm

     This unusual god of the Egyptian pantheon originated in ancient Nubia to the south of Egypt in modern day Sudan. Evidence of his worship there can be found in the collossal wreck that is the temple of Gebel Barkal.

He was depicted as a hideous dwarf with leonine attributes. This lion connection can be seen in the style of ears and a vaguely lion 'mane-esque'  beard. His ugliness was supposed to be enough to ward off evil spirits, dangerous creatures and even nasty smells. If that didn't work he would bang a tambourine, probably yodel in a freakish way and/or dash knives through the air. This could be invoked by possessing an amulet and praying with it. For special events such as festivals and more notably during child birth, an actual dwarf was dressed up as Bes to perform his wild yet merry dance. The laughter that this no doubt would have produced also understates his 'bringer of joy' status that was a shared title of the cat goddess Bast/Bastet. 

 He was adopted into the Egyptian world during the 12th dynasty, probably after conquest and was originally introduced as a protective god of the royal household. The general population soon embraced Bes as a god for their own household and his image has been found on objects as diverse as chairs, cups, boomerangs and Egyptian blue/green amulets such as the one on offer here.