Keywords: Egyptian - Bes - Walters 481604 - Back.jpg This dwarf-like protective deity was very popular in ancient Egypt Bes is represented with the nude body of a dwarf grotesque facial features and the ears and mane of a lion He wears a tall feather-crown and usually rests his hands on his hips Known from as early as the Middle Kingdom ca 2000 BC Bes was venerated as a protector of the home family and childbirth and for that reason figures prominently in domestic magic and amulets His close connection to all aspects of fertility and sexuality is demonstrated by the presence of his image in the Birth-houses -shrines associated with temples of the Late and Greco-Roman periods He also had a special relation to the goddess Hathor and performed in her retinue as a musician and dancer This amulet of Bes is a variant of the standard type representing the god with a protruding tongue and with uraei cobra serpents crowned by sun-disks which flank his feathered crown A rectangular base and a loop behind the head complete the pendant ca 950 700 BC Third Intermediate Egyptian faience with dark blue glaze cm 3 75 3 46 0 15 accession number 48 1604 4631 Henry Walters Baltimore date and mode of acquisition unknown Walters Art Museum Henry Walters Acquired by Henry Walters place of origin Egypt Walters Art Museum license Ancient Egyptian amulets in the Walters Art Museum Ancient Egyptian faience in the Walters Art Museum Bes amulet |