This Silly, Bug-Eyed Dwarf Deity Was Defender of 'Everything Good'

[Judi Lynn]

This Silly, Bug-Eyed Dwarf Deity Was Defender of 'Everything Good'
By Laura Geggel, Associate Editor | March 29, 2019 01:15pm ET

Archaeologists recently found a piece of pottery decorated with the funny face of an ancient deity who is often depicted as a bearded dwarf with a big face and bug eyes.

This deity, known as Bes, is often portrayed as a silly guy — usually with his tongue sticking out and a feathered hat adorning his head. On this particular pottery shard, however, it's unclear exactly what the deity is doing with his tongue, which broke off long ago.

Archaeologists found the deity's clay face in the Givati ​​Parking Lot excavation, the largest active archaeological excavation in Jerusalem at the moment. In particular, they uncovered the face in a large trash pit, which held dozens of other pottery fragments dated to the Persian period, when ancient Persians ruled the Middle East from about the fourth to the fifth century B.C., according to archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) and Tel Aviv University. [Photos: Ancient Egyptian Statues of Deities Found in Pit]

Bes' clay face is broken, but it's still possible to see two wide-open eyes, a nose, one ear and part of a mouth.

More:
https://www.livescience.com/65109-ancient-dwarf-deity-pottery.html

[Sneederbunk]

1. Unlike the crazy,pot-bellied deity in the Whitehouse, who is

defender of everything bad.