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Depicted as a cat-headed female figure, this
uninscribed statuette is doubtless to be
identified as Bastet because of her attributes. She
is wearing a form-fitting, ankle-length dress
with short, flared sleeves and a V-neck. Linear
adjuncts decorate the dress with decorative
ornamentation which represents the patterned
textile from which the dress was tailored.
Patterned textiles are rarely represented in
ancient Egyptian art, and its depiction on our
Bastet is noteworthy. This depiction of a deluxe
and costly garment is complemented by the pair
of original boat-shaped earrings of gold which
grace our goddess’s pierced ears. Her right arm
is bent at the elbow and its elevated hand shakes
a naos-shaped sistrum, or sacred rattle. Her left
arm, likewise bent at the elbow, is placed on her
abdomen with its hand holding an aegis, or
ceremonial implement, here consisting of a head
of a lioness rising majestically from a broad
collar. A basket, crafted from wicker as its
reticulated pattern suggests, is suspend by its
handle on that arm.
The historical origins of the goddess Bastet may
be traced back to the Delta city of Bubastis from
which her cult spread. In accordance with the
complex conceits of ancient Egyptian religious
concepts, powerful, and often destructive forces,
had to be appeased and allayed in order to effect
their transformation into benevolent, useful
powers. In keeping with this conceit, feline
goddesses were possessed of opposing
characteristics often given visual form in the
contrast between a lioness and a cat. The
destructive forces associated with felines was
often manifest in the lioness as Sakhmet whose
belligerent characteristics could be soothed by
the playing of a sistrum in order for her to
metamorphose into a more docile pussy cat. It is
for this reason that our figure of Bastet shakes
her sistrum and holds out the aegis of the
lioness. These attributes were intended to
remind the ancient Egyptians of the two-fold
nature of Bastet and how her docile, benevolent
nature could turn violent and hostile if adherence
to her rituals were not strictly observed.
On the basis of parallels, our Bastet can be dated
to the Late Period, and represents a particularly
fine example of the type.
References:
For stylistically similar and contemporary
examples which, however, neither wear earrings
nor hold baskets, see J. Malek, The Cat in Ancient
Egypt (London1993), pages 104-105, figures 70,
71, and 73.
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