This image ππ ±π shows a bronze ππ€ππ¦ statue πππππΎ of the beloved π»ππ Egyptian goddess πΉπ Bastet π―πππ! This statue ππ ±ππΎ is dated to the Late Period – Ptolemaic Period (c. 664β30 B.C.E.).
The goddesses πΉπΉπΉπ Bastet π―πππ and Sekhmet πππ ππ were both depicted as cats π ππ ±π πͺ, however, Sekhmet πππ ππ usually had the body of a woman πππ while Bastet π―πππ usually had the body of a cat π ππ ±π . Sekhmet πππ ππ is also usually distinguished from Bastet π―πππ by the sun disc π³πΊ that usually appears on her head!
However, when Bastet π―πππ was depicted with the body of a woman πππ (like in this statue ππ ±ππΎ), she was usually holding a sistrum πππππ£ in one hand! Since Hathor π‘ was usually seen with sistrums πππππ£πͺ, this shows a link between the two π» goddesses πΉπΉπΉπ!
This statue ππ ±ππΎ also shows Bastet π―πππ holding a basket πππππ in her elbow/arm (opposite the sistrum πππππ£) and a lion-headed aegis in the same arm. An aegis is an object that has the head of a deity πΉ (in this case a lion) with a broad collar π ±π΄ππΊπ underneath it! The aegis itself was a protective π ππ‘π symbol associated with Bastet π―πππ and was used in rituals and festivals! The basket πππππ is thought to possibly hold kittens, but that is just an inference by historians and Egyptologists!
Bastet π―πππ was the goddess πΉπ of pregnancy and childbirth and was considered to be the protective π ππ‘π form of the goddess πΉπ so it is very fitting for her to be holding the aegis!
Sekhmet πππ ππ and Bastet π―πππ were believed to be the two π» unpredictable personalities of the same goddess πΉπ. While Sekhmet πππ ππ represented the destructive and unpredictable side, Bastet π―πππ was the gentler and calmer side.
This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost.
