The Bearded Man and the Pregnant Woman Terracotta Figurines: A Case of Divine “Open Relationship” in Persian-Period Levant?

Abstract

In this article, the authors analyze a widespread Persian-period terracotta figurine type in the Levant: the seated man with an atef crown or a cylindrical tiara and a hand touching his beard. As well as studying the specific attributes and the evolution of this iconography, the authors will address its association in cultic contexts with another figurine: the pregnant woman. By providing new arguments to identify the bearded man and the pregnant woman as (mainly) divine images, which are at the same time associated and distinct, the authors stress that the idea of a divine couple in an “open relationship” is of pivotal importance in understanding the organization of ancient polytheisms.