Bes

People in Upper Egypt started venerating Bes long before people in Lower Egypt, indicating a Nubian origin. The word “bes” means “cat” in Nubian, suggesting a possible Nubian or southern origin of Bes, the god having regularly been depicted with feline features. == Worship ==

(Egypt) Bes was a household protector, becoming responsible– throughout ancient Egyptian history– for such varied tasks as killing snakes, fighting off evil spirits, watching after children, and aiding women in labour by fighting off evil spirits, and thus present with Taweret at births. Images of the deity, quite different from those of the other gods, were kept in homes. Normally Egyptian gods were shown in profile, but instead Bes appeared in full face portrait, ithyphallic, and sometimes in a soldier's tunic, so as to appear ready to launch an attack on any approaching evil. He scared away demons from houses, so his statue was put up as a protector. Later, in the Ptolemaic period of Egyptian history, chambers were constructed at Saqqara, painted with images of Bes and his female counterpart Beset, thought by Egyptologists to have been for the purpose of curing fertility problems or general healing rituals. At the end of the 6th century BC, images of Bes began to spread across the Achaemenid Empire, which Egypt belonged to at the time. Images of Bes have been found at the Persian capital of Susa, and as far away as central Asia. Over time, the image of Bes became more Persian in style, as he was depicted wearing Persian clothes and headdress. == Iconography ==

Figurines Modern scholars such as James Romano - Egyptologist and former Curator of Egyptian Art at the Brooklyn Museum - claim that in its earliest inception Bes was a representation of a lion rearing up on its hind legs. After the Third Intermediate Period, Bes can be found on a variety of household objects including furniture, toiletries, infant feeding bottles, game pieces, and more beginning in the Middle Kingdom. == Popular culture ==

• Bes appears, as part of the delegation of Egyptian gods, in The Sandman: Season of Mists (December 1990 – July 1991), by Neil Gaiman. • Bes appears as a trickster in Mummies Alive! (1997) animated series. • Bes appears as a character in Otherland: volume 3 Mountain of Black Glass (1999) by Tad Williams. His physical description reflects traditional iconography. • Bes is a friend and helper to the heroes in Pyramid Scheme (2001) by Eric Flint and Dave Freer. • Bes appears, as a god of love in the Egyptian movie Secret Service Suitor (Aris min geha amneya) (2004). • Bes is an important character in the books of the saga The Kane Chronicles (2010–2012) by Rick Riordan. • Bes appears in the video game Realm of the Mad God (2011) as a boss of an Egyptian themed dungeon known as the "Tomb of the Ancients", alongside Nut and Geb. • Bes appears in “the Nikopol Trilogy” (1980-1992), by Enki Bilal, alongside several of the ancient gods of Egypt, hovering over a dystopian Paris and world. • Bes also appeared in Discovery Kid's Tutenstein animated series(2003). He was always the party animal of the gods. ==Gallery==

Bes (Deity).png|Bes was sometimes depicted with blue skin Amuleto raffigurante il dio Bes 1DSC4945.tif|Amulet depicting the god Bes, blue Egyptian faience, between 1540 and 1076 BC, New Kingdom. Museo Egizio, Turin. Amulet of the God Bes MET DP109383.jpg|Amulet of Bes; 1070–712 BC; faience; height: 3.7 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City) Bes and Beset-E 11138-IMG 8039-gradient.jpg|Bes and Beset; 664–332 BC; limestone; height: 31.7 cm, width: 22.5 cm; Louvre Limestone Bes MET DP263916.jpg|Cypriot statuette of Bes; late 6th – early 5th century BC; limestone; overall: 14 × 8.3 × 7 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art Egypt, Late Period, Dynasty 27 or later - Statuette of Bes - 1976.10 - Cleveland Museum of Art.tif|Statuette of Bes; 525 BC; bronze; Late Period, Dynasty 27 or later; overall: 8 × 3.5 × 2.2 cm; Cleveland Museum of Art (Cleveland, Ohio, USA) Cosmetic Container in the Form of a Bes-image MET DP112565.jpg|Cosmetic container; 525–404 BC; faience; height: 9.2 cm, width: 4.4 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art Stela of the God Bes MET DP112573.jpg|Stela of Bes; 4th century BC-1st century AD; painted limestone; height: 38.7 cm, width: 17.7 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art Bell in the form of Bes MET DP239403 (cropped).jpg|Bell in the form of Bes; 332-30 BC; cupreous metal; height: 6.3 cm, diameter: 4.6 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art Fresco from the Temple of Isis in Pompeii depicting the Egyptian god Bes, protector of women and children, North wall of Sacrarium, Naples National Archaeological Museum (14399374958).jpg|Fresco from the Temple of Isis in Pompeii depicting Bes, in the Naples National Archaeological Museum (Italy) Dendera Bes 01.JPG|Bes as depicted on a column capital from the Dendera Temple complex, Roman Period 27278- Bes at Esna.jpg|Bes depicted on a column at the temple of Esna Naples Archaeological Museum 2022 179.jpg|At the Naples Archaeological Museum == Bibliography ==