Lamashtu and Ancient Birth Amulets: Fear, Protection, and Childbirth in Mesopotamia

A small stone amulet from Assur opens a rare window into fear, childbirth, infant loss, and protective magic in ancient Mesopotamia.

Stone amulet against the demon Lamashtu, from Assur, first half of the 1st millennium BC. Vorderasiatisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, inv. VA Ass 00991. The amulet shows Lamashtu surrounde…