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Head of the demon Pazuzu
Near Eastern, Mesopotamian, Babylonian
Neo-Babylonian Period
625–539 B.C.
Findspot: Iraq
Medium/Technique
Chalcedony
Dimensions
Height: 4.6 cm (1 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Helen and Alice Colburn Fund
Accession Number64.522
CollectionsAncient Egypt, Nubia and the Near East
ClassificationsSculpture
DescriptionPazuzu was an Assyrian-Babylonian demonic being of the first millennium BC. He is often considered as an evil underworld demon, but also seems to have been a beneficial protector against pestilential winds. Pazuzu is also closely associated with the demon Lamashtu which caused miscarriage and cot death, acting as an antidote to her evil effects. Pazuzu's amulets were therefore placed in dwellings and worn around the necks of pregnant women.
ProvenanceBy 1962, J.J. Klejman (dealer; b. 1906 - d. 1995), New York; 1964, sold by Klejman to the MFA. (Accession Date: April 8, 1964)