Protective
Taweret
tꜣ-wrtHow it changed
One of the two gods ordinary Egyptians actually lived with. She has almost no temple presence and enormous domestic presence: amulets, bed legs, headrests, cosmetic jars and wands, all of it aimed at getting a woman through childbirth alive. Her composite body is deliberate, made of the three most dangerous animals in Egypt turned to face the other way.
Cult centre
None. Worshipped in houses rather than temples
Best attested
Old Kingdom onward, and continuously popular
Family
Occasionally described as a consort of Set or of Bes, inconsistently.
Epithets
- “The great one”
How to recognise the figure
A standing hippopotamus with a swollen belly, the limbs of a lion, the back and tail of a crocodile, and human breasts, usually holding the sa sign of protection.
Others in this group