Perceptions of the Serpent in the Ancient Near East: Its Bronze Age Role in Apotropaic Magic, Healing and Protection
PERCEPTIONS OF THE SERPENT IN THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST: ITS BRONZE AGE ROLE IN APOTROPAIC MAGIC, HEALING AND PROTECTION by WENDY REBECCA JENNIFER GOLDING submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the subject ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN STUDIES at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: PROFESSOR M LE ROUX November 2013 Snake I am The Beginning and the End, The Protector and the Healer, The Primordial Creator, Wisdom, all-knowing, Duality, Life, yet the terror in the darkness. I am Creation and Chaos, The water and the fire. I am all of this, I am Snake. I rise with the lotus From muddy concepts of Nun. I am the protector of kings And the fiery eye of Ra. I am the fiery one, The dark one, Leviathan Above and below, The all-encompassing ouroboros, I am Snake. (Wendy Golding 2012) ii SUMMARY In this dissertation I examine the role played by the ancient Near Eastern serpent in apotropaic and prophylactic magic. Within this realm the serpent appears in roles in healing and protection where magic is often employed. The possibility of positive and negative roles is investigated. The study is confined to the Bronze Age in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and Syria-Palestine. The serpents, serpent deities and deities with ophidian aspects and associations are described. By examining these serpents and deities and their roles it is possible to incorporate a comparative element into his study on an intra- and inter- regional basis. In order to accumulate information for this study I have utilised textual and pictorial evidence, as well as artefacts (such as jewellery, pottery and other amulets) bearing serpent motifs.
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