Bastet
Name: Bastet, Bast, Baast, Ubaste
Features: A human female body with the head of a lioness or a cat
Source: Egyptian Mythology
Habitat: Egypt
Bast was the daughter of the Egyptian deities Ra and Isis. She was first depicted as a fierce lioness or sometimes as a woman with only the head of a lioness. Later on in history, she is described as having the body of a human female with the head of a domesticated cat.
Her siblings included Sekhmet, Ammut & Horus. Her sister Sekhmet had a human female body with the head of a tiger. She was very powerful & destructive and often used as weapon of war. She became more dominant in the lioness deity war against her sister Bastet.
The title Bastet defines this mythical hybrid creature as the goddess of protection against evil spirits and contagious diseases. She was also referred to as the Eye of Ra & Lady of Flame.
As domesticated cats became more popular in ancient Egypt, Bast came to be more familiarly known as the deity with the head of a cat. In ancient Egypt, cats were held on a pedestal because of their ability to combat vermin such as rats, mice & snakes. Baast also goes down in history as fighting the evil Egyptian snake referred to as Apep.
In these ancient times, pet cats of royalty were often adorned with golden jewellery and allowed to feast on their owners plates. Their remains are sometimes found alongside their mummified owners in ancient Egyptian tombs like the ones found in the temple of Per-Bast. Herodotus visited Budastis around 450BC and uncovered a cult, which he wrote about that suggested the domesticated cat being highly regarded upon & part of extensive burials among those how resided there.
Statues of the Gayer-Anderson cat, an ancient Egyptian statue made of bronze was created & believed to be a representation of Bast. The statue of the cat wears jewellery & a protective wedjat amulet.
The fact that domesticated cats tend to be caring and very protective of their offspring – women of this time who wanted children would wear amulets with the goddess Baast along with kittens to show interest & knowledge of good motherhood. The number of kittens displayed would indicate the number of children desired.
Bast also gradually became regarded as the goddess of scents
& perfumes around the same time as Anubis became known as the god of
embalming. She also became to be
regarded as his wife.
bastet - IN GAMING
GAME – SMITE
Producers – HI-REZ STUDIOS
In this game, this daughter of Ra loves life and also has a fierce set of claws. These are the various skills she can use in the game.
Open wound – She can hit the enemy with Pounce, Declaw or Razor Whip that can all wound the enemy for a short time.
Pounce – She can quickly pounce to the enemy target location.
Razor Whip – Swipes that cause the enemy to bleed for damage.
Cat Call – She can summon 3 others cats to help her attack. They especially love to go after any surrounding & bleeding enemy targets.
Return to Mythical Creatures and Beasts home page
We are currently publishing a new version of this site with added features that we hope our fans enjoy. Changes are being made on a regular basis - make sure to visit often so you don't miss out!