Description: Flat-backed amulet of a frontally facing Bes head. Details of the face modelled. Bes sticks his tongue out from beneath a thick beard/mane. The plumed headress has broken away, although the remains of a transverse piercing through its base can still be seen. The reverse is undecorated.
Collector's Mark: 276 written in ink on reverse.
Cultural Significance: Bes as a protective deity was popular from at least the Middle Kingdom, although Bes head amulets do not appear prior to the Third Intermediate Period but once established remained common through the Roman Period. Bes amulets were common elements of jewellery and were worn in life as well as placed in tombs.
Comparanda: Louvre MG 16786 1; UCL 52848; Boston MFA 02.560; Brooklyn 37.919E, 05.344; British Museum EA27540.

Notes:  See W. Petrie, Amulets, 1914, 190b-e; C. Andrews, Amulets of Ancient Egypt. 1994, p.40, plate 15.

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