Shown here in her the form of a woman rather than a lion or a domestic cat, the ancient Egyptian goddess Bastet is portrayed as the epitome of the feminine divine.

Regarded as a goddess who protected Egypt, its royal family, and its people, Bastet was particularly revered, as were all cats within the land. She was also associated with beauty of movement, agility, strength, caution and other such feline qualities that she was said to embody.

In this case, she is imbued with grace and beauty, shown as a lithe woman garbed in the traditional robes and headdress in which she is often portrayed. Standing with her hand on her hip, her skin is jet black in contrast to the gold of her clothing, and the feline eyes that rest beneath two feline ears.

Place this 10 1/2", cold cast-resin statue upon your altar and celebrate the goddess to bring the joy and protection she offers into your household.

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Bast is an ancient solar and war Goddess, worshipped at least since the Second Dynasty. In the late dynasties, the priests of Amun began to call her Bastet. Bast was a goddess of the sun throughout most of Ancient Egyptian history, but later was changed to a goddess of the moon by Greeks occupying Ancient Egypt toward the end of its civilization.

Due to the severe disaster to the food supply that could be caused by simple vermin such as mice and rats, and their ability to fight and kill snakes, especially cobras, cats in Egypt were revered highly, sometimes being given golden jewelry to wear and being allowed to eat from the same plates as their owners. Bastet was strongly revered as the patron of cats, and thus it was in the temple at Per-Bast that dead cats were brought for burial.

Bast was thought of as the Goddess of perfumes, earning the title Perfumed Protector. In connection with this, when Anubis became the God of embalming, Bast, as Goddess of ointment, came to be regarded as his wife.

Bast was regarded as a good mother, and she was sometimes depicted with numerous kittens. Consequently, a woman who wanted children sometimes wore an amulet showing the Goddess with kittens, the number of which indicated her own desired number of children.