Lamashtu

Sumerian name in Old Babylonian cuneiform, dDim3-me

In Mesopotamian mythology, Lamashtu (𒀭𒈕𒈨; Akkadian dLa-maš-tu; Sumerian Dimme dDim3-me or Kamadme), the daughter of the sky god Anu, is a demonic Mesopotamian deity that spread disease and was widely blamed as the cause of miscarriages and cot deaths.

Although Lamashtu has traditionally been identified as a demoness, the fact that she could cause evil on her own without the permission of other deities strongly indicates that she was seen as a goddess in her own right. Mesopotamian peoples protected themselves against her using amulets and talismans. She was believed to ride in her boat on the river of the underworld and she was associated with donkeys.

Characterization

Appearance

Lamashtu has the "head of a lion, the teeth of a donkey, naked breasts, a hairy body, hands stained (with blood?), long fingers and fingernails, and the feet of Anzû".

Character

Lamashtu's father was the sky god Anu. Unlike many other usual demonic figures and depictions in Mesopotamian lore, Lamashtu was said to act in malevolence of her own accord, rather than at the gods' instructions. Along with this, her name was written together with the cuneiform determinative indicating deity, making her a goddess in her own right.

Lamashtu's main victims were unborn or newly born babies, and by extension pregnant women. She touched the woman's stomach seven times to kill the baby, or kidnap it from the wet nurse. Babies and young children were not her sole victims, as those also included adolescents, adults and even old people. In this instance, Lamashtu functions as a bringer of disease.

Mesopotamian sources

Sumerian and Akkadian Literature

Atra-Hasis Myth

Pashittu/Pašittu, "the Exterminator", which is a name of Lamashtu, appears in the Atra-hasis myth to keep the population growth in check. Enki, during his speech, says:

Let there be the pašittu-demon among the people, to snatch the baby from its mother's lap.

In this myth, Lamashtu is part of the divine order, which represents a minority view that does not seem to inform the exorcistic rituals, as in those, the gods help against her, and she does not operate on divine assignment.

Names

Lamashtu's seven names are frequently encountered in incantations and on amulets. The incantation opens by addressing Lamashtu, "Dimme/Kamadme, daughter of Anu", and the names that follow appear like descriptive epithets. One of Lamashtu's obscure names is "adopted daughter of Irnina", while in other occasions, she borrows the name of goddess Inanna.

One amulet example that includes Lamashtu's names is AO 8184:

Oh, 'Dimme'. 'Daughter of Anu',

'Who was named by the gods',

'Victoria, heroine among ladies',

'Dimme (or: Lamaštu) the exalted',

'Who holds the evil Asakku in a tight grip',

'South Wind weighing heavily on mankind',

you must not approach (this) person.

Astrology

LBAT 1597 is an astral-medical text. It mentions diseases, which are all ascribed to celestial influences.

6. If (the moon is) in the region of Taurus and Orion, joint-disease, vertigo, maškadu-disease, šû-disease, seizure; [alternatively] lamaštu-disease (lit. 'Daughter of Anu') (in) Orion (and) Saturn. 9. If (the moon is) in the region of Leo, lamaštu, labašu, and ahhazu-demons, the seized-by-lamaštu(-disease), seized by lamaštu day-and-night(-disease), the god is a lion related to a belligerent god, Ištar, and Hand of the Ghost-disease, (in the region of) Venus and Leo.

Relationship with spirits

The demon Pazuzu was invoked to protect birthing mothers and infants against Lamashtu's malevolence, usually on amulets and statues. Although Pazuzu was said to be bringer of famine and drought, he was also invoked against evil for protection, and against plague, and was primarily and popularly invoked against his fierce, malicious rival Lamashtu. Although Pazuzu frequently appears on amulets, he is absent from the Lamashtu rituals.

Magical Corpus

Lamashtu Incantations

Lamashtu incantations were gathered and published by Walter Farber. One such incantation against Lamashtu is the following:

Spell: She is monstrous, the Daughter-of-Anu, who wreaks havoc among the babies.
Her paws are a snare net, her bosom (hold?) spells death.
Cruel, raging, malicious, rapacious, violent,
destructive, aggressive is the Daughter-of-Anu.
She lays hands on the womb(s) of women in labor,
she pulls the babies from (the hold of) the nannies,
suckles (them), sings (to them), and covers (them) with kisses.
The weapons she uses are powerful, (and) her muscles are very agile.
The Daughter-of-Anu acts as the wet-nursing priestess/nun of the gods, her brothers.
Her head is a lion’s head, donkey’s teeth are [her] teeth?
Her lips are a gale and spread death.
From deep in the mountains she came down,
roaring like a lion,
whimpering all the time like a bitch.

— Lamaštu Series II, Inc. 12

Amulets and iconography

Lamashtu was represented in a distinctive but historically variable iconography on amulets and other apotropaic objects. Early representations could vary considerably in their treatment of her head and other features, while later first-millennium BCE examples developed more standardized compositions.

Mesopotamian texts and images describe Lamashtu as a composite being combining human and animal characteristics. Her appearance could include a canine or leonine face or head, the teeth of a donkey or dog, the talons of a bird of prey, wings, and other animal features. Surviving amulets likewise show considerable variation. While Lamashtu is generally depicted as clearly female and nude, her genitalia are deliberately omitted. On an obsidian amulet in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, for example, Lamashtu has a lion-griffin-like head, raised clawed hands, and the feet of a bird of prey.

A number of iconographic elements became particularly characteristic. Lamashtu could be shown holding serpents, standing or moving upon a donkey, and accompanied by a dog and a pig or piglet, which in some representations suckle at her breasts. Other amulets depict her with objects including a comb and spindle. These features did not occur uniformly on every object; typological studies distinguish earlier and later forms of the iconography, including images emphasizing a threatening figure with raised hands, a figure holding a comb and spindle, and the more elaborate serpent-holding compositions of the first millennium BCE.

The largest and most elaborate examples integrate Lamashtu's image into scenes of ritual protection. The Neo-Assyrian "Plaque des Enfers" in the Louvre depicts divine symbols and protective beings above a ritual scene involving a sick person and ritual specialists. In its lower register, Lamashtu holds two serpents while positioned on a donkey in a boat; a dog and pig are shown at her breasts, while Pazuzu appears as an opposing protective force. Related plaques similarly combine the afflicted patient, protective figures, divine symbols, offerings, Lamashtu, and Pazuzu.

Representations of Lamashtu were themselves part of protective and exorcistic practices rather than simply images of the demon. Amulets bearing her image could be worn, attached to the body or garments, or placed near beds, doorways, and other vulnerable spaces, while inscriptions and accompanying ritual imagery identified and acted against the demon. The material form of these objects, including their portability, suspension devices, inscriptions, and placement, formed part of their intended apotropaic efficacy.

Pazuzu is frequently associated with this protective imagery but should be distinguished iconographically and functionally from Lamashtu. Although Pazuzu was himself a demonic being, his image and name could be employed against Lamashtu. His head was worn as a pendant or incorporated into plaques and other objects, where his threatening appearance was used apotropaically to repel her. On some Lamashtu plaques he is shown confronting or driving away Lamashtu, while his head could also appear separately as a protective device.

Amulets

In modern culture

See also

References

  1. ↑ Hartmut Kühne Dūr-Katlimmu 2008 and beyond 2010 section 'The place of Lamashtu in the Near Eastern pantheon' Page 243 "If the demon Lamashtu can already be identified in old Assyrian texts9, the older attestation of her name is its Sumerian equation, DIMME, in an old Babylonian incantation10."
  2. ↑ George, Andrew R. (2018-01-01). "Kamadme, the Sumerian Counterpart of the Demon Lamaštu". Sources of Evil: 150–157. doi:10.1163/9789004373341_006. ISBN 9789004373341.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Black, Jeremy; Green, Anthony (1998) [1992]. "Lamaštu". Gods, demons, and symbols of ancient Mesopotamia. The British Museum Press. pp. 115–116.
  4. ↑ Line 47 has ddim-me, the superscript d being the divine determinative.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Wiggermann, F.A.M. (2000-01-01), "Lamaštu, Daughter of Anu. A Profile", Birth in Babylonia and the Bible, BRILL, pp. 217–249, ISBN 978-90-72371-89-8, retrieved 2026-08-22{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)
  6. ↑ Stephanie, Dalley (2000) [1989]. "Atrahasis". Myths from Mesopotamia (Revised ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 35.
  7. 1 2 Farber, Walter (2014-04-28). Lamaštu. Penn State University Press. ISBN 978-1-57506-882-4.
  8. ↑ AO 8184 (plaque de conjuration), retrieved 2026-08-22
  9. ↑ "electronic Babylonian Library". electronic Babylonian Library. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
  10. ↑ "Lamashtu | Mesopotamian demon | Britannica". www.britannica.com.
  11. ↑ Wiggermann, Frans A. M. (2005). "Pazuzu". Reallexikon der Assyriologie.
  12. ↑ Götting, Eva (2014). "Lamashtu". Iconography of Deities and Demons in the Ancient Near East. University of Zurich.
  13. ↑ Wiggermann, Frans A. M. (2000). "Chapter X: Lamaštu". Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts. STYX Publications.
  14. ↑ Hirvonen, Joonas (2019). "Lamaštu's Animal Nature". Animals and Their Relation to Gods, Humans and Things in the Ancient World. Springer.
  15. ↑ "Amulet with a Lamashtu demon". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  16. ↑ Götting, Eva (2014). "Lamashtu". Iconography of Deities and Demons in the Ancient Near East. University of Zurich.
  17. ↑ "The Lamaštu amulet BM 120388". Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  18. ↑ Götting, Eva (2014). "Lamashtu". Iconography of Deities and Demons in the Ancient Near East. University of Zurich.
  19. ↑ "Plaque des Enfers". Musée du Louvre. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  20. ↑ "plaque de conjuration". Musée du Louvre. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  21. ↑ Götting, Eva (2014). "Lamashtu". Iconography of Deities and Demons in the Ancient Near East. University of Zurich.
  22. ↑ Said, Miriam K. (2020). Materializing Apotropaia: The Entangled Body and Neo-Assyrian Magical Arts, 9th–7th c. BCE (PhD dissertation). University of California, Berkeley.
  23. ↑ "Pendant with the head of Pazuzu". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  24. ↑ "amulet". British Museum. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  25. ↑ Götting, Eva (2014). "Lamashtu". Iconography of Deities and Demons in the Ancient Near East. University of Zurich.
  26. ↑ Saturday Night Live (2025-03-08). Birthday at Friendly's - SNL. Retrieved 2026-05-09 – via YouTube.