Bes
Bes West AsiaA popular household deity in ancient Egypt, probably of Nubian origin. He is usually depicted as a dwarf with a large bearded face, shaggy eyebrows, long hair, large projecting ears, a flat nose, and a protruding tongue. His arms are thick and long, his legs are bowed, and he wears a tail. Unlike the other Egyptian deities, who in two-dimensional pictures are always shown in profile, Bes appears full face, a form of representation which is only found elsewhere in pictures of Qetesh, an imported Asian goddess of love. Especially associated with human pleasures, Bes was a genial figure and a guardian against misfortune. He slew snakes, protected children, encouraged human fertility, and assisted the hippopotamus goddess Tawert in childbirth.
Qetesh, as the personification of love and beauty, was represented as a naked woman, standing full face on a lion, holding a bunch of flowers in one hand and a snake in the other. Thought of as the...
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