Lamashtu Plaque: Assyrian Healing Device Against The Evil Goddess
A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com - 'Lamashtu Plaque' (or 'Hell Plaque') was an Assyrian healing device against the female demon Lamashtu and her evil doings.
Lamashtu plaque held by Pazuzu. Image credit: Rama - CC BY-SA 2.0 fr
Now in the Louvre, the original of this plaque is made of bronze and dates from the Neo-Assyrian period between the tenth and seventh century BC. Lamashtu plaque held by the demon Pazuzu, the king of the demons of the wind and son of Hanbi, the god of all evil forces and the father of Pazuzu and Humbaba.
The artifact is one of many valuable ancient Assyrian treasures.
Lamashtu, often called "she who erases," is an evil creature blamed for the deaths of children and mothers, poisoning water, killing plants, consuming the flesh, drinking the blood of adult men, and causing nightmares. She had a hairy body with a lioness's head, a donkey's teeth and ears, and bird talons.
According to Mesopotamian beliefs, hanging the plaque over the bed was important to ward off sickness by driving evil Lamashtu out. She was believed to cause many illnesses. Her husband Pazuzu, shown on the back, is invoked to persuade her to go away and thus speed the patient's recovery.
Exorcism Ceremony Depicted On The Artifact
The exorcism scene is divided into registers. The upper register shows symbols that symbolize the great cosmic gods invoked to heal the sick person: the sun of Shamash, the crescent moon of Sin, the lightning bolt of the storm god Adad, and the winged disc of Ashur, the supreme god of the Assyrian Empire.
The seven spirits depicted in the second register (each with a different animal's head) probably had a beneficial function because they symbolically guard the door of the patient's bed-chamber.
Protection plaque against Lamashtu (fragment). Dimensions: 6.40 cm high, 8.40 cm wide, 1.20 cm deep. Photo credits: Rama - CC BY-SA 2.0 fr - Louvre Museum
The patient is seen in the third register, lying on a bed surrounded by two figures dressed in fish skins. These figures could be the spirits associated with Ea, the god of the depths and wisdom. They are probably the priestly exorcists conducting the ritual with the help of three animal-headed spirits.
Driving Out Evil Spirits
Lamashtu, sitting on a donkey in a boat is depicted in the lower register. The evil Lamashtu is twice as big as all the other characters. She is presented as physically fearsome, with a hairy body, lion's head, and talons.
She is holding and suckling two lion cubs and snakes. From an inscription, we learn that she is "furious and cruel, a dazzling goddess. As a she-wolf; she snatches the young man on the path, the girl at play, the child from his nurse's arms." Clearly, she is responsible for evil deeds.
The boat is sailing along a river full of fish, symbolizing the world of Apsu (Abzu) - the underworld home to demons. Do all the gifts depicted on the artifact encourage Lamashtu to set off on her journey back to the underworld? Pazuzu is standing behind Lamashtu and is as fearsome as his wife.
He is present there to protect the patient by urging his wife to retreat. This ancient belief was very strong and widespread in the 1st millennium in Mesopotamia. Ancient Mesopotamians feared Lamashtu and searched for different means to protect themselves from this dangerous female demon and her evil doings.
The uppermost part of the plaque displays the different gods involved in the healing process: the sun of Shamash, the crescent moon of Sin, the lightning bolt of Adad, and the winged disc of Ashur.
Close-up of plaque' s top register. Pazuzu holding the protection plaque against Lamashtu. Photo credits: Rama - CC BY-SA 2.0 fr - Louvre Museum
In the second register, seven animal-headed spirits guard the door to a bed-chamber, and in the third, the patient is depicted lying on a bed, flanked by two priests, who are aided by three animal spirits associated with Ea god (or Enki), the Sumerian god of water, knowledge, mischief, crafts, and creation.
Overlooking the plaque is Lamashtu's husband, the demon Pazuzu, the only one who could persuade her to go away. It's worth mentioning that 'Lamashtu Plaque' was originally thought to have represented the Babylonian goddess Eresh-kigal and her journey through the underworld.
The lion-headed figure at the top was believed to be the Babylonian god Nergal, ("Great Watcher") and Ereshkigal's husband.
In Mesopotamian mythology, the goddess Ereshkigal, "Queen of the Great Earth," ruled the underworld. She was also called Irkalla and the only one who could pass judgment and give laws in her kingdom.
Was the female demon Lamashtu the goddess Ereshkigal?
Based on Mesopotamian mythology, Lamashtu was the daughter of the sky god Anu. There is also a Semitic list of seven called Kamu or captive demons: Lamashtu, Labasu, Akbazu, Lilu, Lilitu, Ardat, Lili, and Mukil.
Was Lamashtu punished for misbehaving by the supreme gods and expelled from the Earth to underground realms where she was forced to stay indefinitely?
Written by – A. Sutherland AncientPages.com Staff Writer
Updated on March 14, 2023
Copyright © AncientPages.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part without the express written permission of AncientPages.com
Expand for referencesReferences:
Leick, Gwendolyn, Mesopotamia
More From Ancient Pages
-
Ancient Mesoamerican Board Games ‘Patollis’ Discovered In Mexico
Archaeology | Sep 9, 2024 -
Ancient History Of Chinese Swords
Featured Stories | Aug 20, 2018 -
Were Mysterious Ancient Man-Made Earthworks In The Amazon Forest Ritual Communication Spaces?
Archaeology | Sep 6, 2017 -
Well-Preserved Settlement Dated To 2,400 BC Unearthed At Tell Edfu, Egypt
Archaeology | Feb 8, 2018 -
Statuettes Of Gods And Goddesses Unearthed At Ancient Site Of Kültepe
Archaeology | Sep 16, 2020 -
Secrets Behind 2,000-Year-Old Roman Water Management Revealed
Ancient Technology | Aug 4, 2023 -
Stunning Facial Reconstruction Of ‘Siberian Tutankhamun’ And His ‘Queen’ Who Died 2,600 Years Ago
Archaeology | Jan 12, 2021 -
Unusual Viking Secret Hidden Underground In California Reminds Of A Similar Discovery In Colorado
Featured Stories | Sep 12, 2024 -
Aristotle: First Book Collector Who Assembled The First Great Library Of Antiquity
Featured Stories | Jun 23, 2017 -
Benin Bronze Sculpture Looted By British Soldiers In Nigeria – Returns Home
Archaeology | Apr 2, 2021 -
Biblical City In Zanoah Offers Archaeological Evidence Of Moses’ Journey To The Promised Land
Archaeology | Jul 18, 2024 -
Weird Archaeological Discovery In Ancient Scottish Cave – A Neolithic And Celtic Mystery
Featured Stories | May 30, 2024 -
Stone Of Scone: Mysterious Stone Of Destiny Has Turbulent Ancient History
Artifacts | Mar 19, 2016 -
Polycarp Of Smyrna: Burned At The Stake And Pierced With A Dagger
Featured Stories | Jun 25, 2020 -
Mysterious History Of Qin Shi Huang – First Emperor Of China
Featured Stories | Jan 17, 2016 -
Can King Ashurbanipal’s Strange Clay Tablet Unravel The Mystery Of The Lunar Kings
Featured Stories | Nov 9, 2021 -
DNA Shows First Scandinavians Followed Two Distinct Migration Routes
Archaeology | Jan 11, 2018 -
Biblical Prophet Jeremiah Whose Prophecies Disappointed People
Biblical Mysteries | Jan 30, 2019 -
Biblical Jonah Visits Nineveh – The Evil City
Biblical Mysteries | Nov 9, 2018 -
Archaeologists uncover new Yup’ik artifacts near Quinhagak, Southwest Alaska
Artifacts | Aug 28, 2015