Mythology of Bes
Picture: Bes at the Temple of Isis.
Philae.
The name Bes (perhaps from the word
besa, 'to protect) is a relatively late term used to
describe what are really a number of deities and demons of
Egypt, perhaps not all originally related, though all of
similar form. Perhaps ten separate gods - Aha, Amam, Bes,
Hayet, Ihty, Mefdjet, Menew, Segeb, Sopdu and Tetenu -
share similar, if not identical, characteristics making
"Bes" a complex and not always clearly understood figure.
Although the developed deity came to be one of the most
popular and widespread of Egyptian gods, little can be said
with certainty of his beginning. In the past different
scholars have assigned him both African and Near Eastern
roots, but this is unnecessary and the god is attested in
Egypt - if somewhat indirectly - since Old Kingdom times.
He (or related deities such as Aha: 'fighter') appears on
scores of artifacts of Middle Kingdom date, but it is not
until the New Kingdom and later that Bes figures and images
become truly widespread and reflect popular acceptance of
the developed deity.
Despite his appearance, which changed in many details over
time, Bes was deemed beneficent to humans and he was
accepted by all classes of Egyptians as a powerful
apotropaic deity. He was especially associated with the
protection of children and of pregnant women and those
giving birth and often depicted alongside Tawret in this
role. Just as the Bes figure subsumed various minor gods
and demons, in later times he was himself syncretized with
other protective deities, forming the 'core' of a composite
deity whose elements included Amun, Min, Horus, Sopdu,
Reshef and other Egyptian gods. Mythologically, Bes could
also be associated with Ra, Hathor and Horus - sometimes as
the combined Horbes - and a female form of the god, Beset,
sometimes appears as the mother of Horus.
Iconography of
Bes
Picture: Protective images of Bes such as
this surmounted the columns of the Roman
mammisi or birth house at Dendera.
While the appearance of the gods had
been compared with models as diverse as African pygmies and
with prehistoric Libyan images, James Romano demonstrated a
number of years ago that the origin of the Bes iconography
is most likely to be found in the image of a male lion
rearing up on its hind paws. Later aspects of the deity -
from New Kingdom times - also display characteristics of
achondroplastic dwarfism so that in his developed form the
god is usually portrayed as dwarf-like with shortened legs
and an englarged head which is usually depicted from the
front in two-dimensional representations. His mask-like and
invariably bearded features frame large staring eyes and a
protruding tongue, and he is often depicted with the mane
of a lion and a lion's tail, which preserve his leonine
origins. Some Egyptologists believe that these are remnants
of an original iconography in which the god wore a lionskin
cape rather than physically possessing these
characteristics. After the New Kingdom Bes is sometimes
depicted wearing the leopard skin worn in certain ritual
contexts. For much of his history Bes is also frequently
depicted wearing a plumed headdress and he is often given a
large belly and sometimes protruding breasts - probably
tying him to his role as a patron and protector of pregnant
women.
Because Bes was believed to provide protection from snakes,
he is frequently depicted holding or biting serpents, and
in this form he assimilated, or was himself an avatar of,
the demon Aha who strangled serpents in his bare hands.
Representations of Bes also commonly carry musical
instruments, knives, or the hieroglyphic sa sign signifying
protection, as these attributes all reinforced the god's
protection, as these attributes all reinforced the god's
protective nature. Unlike other representations of the god,
those showing him dancing with musical instruments or with
snakes frequently show him in profile view as was necessary
for indicating movement.
From the Third Intermediate Period on, images of just the
head or mask of Bes occur both as independent amulets and
as parts of other compositions - the power of the mask
alone being clearly considered to be sufficient for
protective purposes. Conversely, in his later composite
form Bes is depicted as the head and sometimes body of a
four-armed, winged and many-headed god with the tail of a
falcon and the attributes of many of the deities with whom
he was combined. In the Graeco-Roman Period images of the
god sometimes carry a sword and circular shield to heighten
his protective qualities or perhaps because he was adopted
as a military deity. The effect is heightened in Roman
birth houses of temples in the Graeco-Roman Period and
perhaps earlier, and the figure of Bes has also been found
painted in rooms ranging from the palace of AMenophis III
at Malqata to the workmen's houses at Deir el-Medina -
perhaps all being rooms associated with childbirth or
children. The vast range of objects upon which Bes was
depicted and the large number of his images and amulets
demonstrate his great popularity as a household deity. His
image was incorporated into jewelry and his amulets were
worn in life, and the god is frequently depicted on
headrests and beds, where he protected the sleeper, as well
as on mirrors, unguent jars and other cosmetic items, as
unguents and cosmetics were used for protection from
inimical influences as well as for adornment. In the same
way, and in addition to the Bes-like figures of the
so-called magical 'knives' or 'wands' of the Middle
Kingdom, the image of Bes surmounted that of the infant
Horus on many of the much later protective and
healing-related plaques known as cippi of Horus.
Individuals may have dressed in Bes masks or costumes to
perform dances aimed at protection, and an example of a
lion/Bes mask found by Petrie in a Middle Kingdom house at
Kahun showed signs of frequent wear and repair, possibly
indicating a professional role for the wearer. Another
aspect of the god is prominent in Ptolemaic times from
which we find 'incubation' or 'Bes chambers' with images of
Bes and a naked goddess that seem to have been used in
healing rituals.
The popularity of Bes spread well beyond ancient Egypt, and
images of the god have been found on ivory work from
Cyprus, from Syria and from Nimrud in Assyria.
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