Ptah-Patek (Ancient Egyptian deity)

Pateco (gr. Παταϊκός (pataikos)), or also Ptah-pateco, is an Egyptian genius or deity represented in the form of a dwarf and mainly on amulets. Many of these have been found in Phoenician and Punic centers throughout the Mediterranean, but also in Etruria and to a lesser extent in Greece.

 Origins, Attributes, and Representation 
The name "Pateque" comes from Herodotus who, in his Histories, refers by this name to the figureheads of Phoenician ships in the form of a protective dwarf.Herodotus, Egypt: Histories, 2002, chap. 3,  Her connection with Ptah comes from the dwarves who, in Egyptian Antiquity, were generally associated with experts in metallurgyMichel Valloggia,  , line 8-10.Let us remember that Ptah is the patron saint of artisans.

Ptah-Patek is generally represented as a deformed, completely naked, green dwarf with a pot-bellied belly and a head disproportionate to his body. There are, however, rare cases where he is adorned with a necklace and a crown that surmounts his skullcap. Unlike Ptah, he possesses neither the Djed pillar, nor the Was scepter, nor the ankh, nor the false beard symbol of royalty. Their only similarity lies in the wearing of the skullcap atop their heads.Comparison between a bronze statuette of Ptah (E 3305) inlaid with gold and electrum from the Louvre Museum in Paris and a faience amulet of Ptah-Patek (number: BAAM 1114) from the Museum of Antiquities in Alexandria. He was represented exclusively in the form of a faience amulet that protected its wearer from evil forces and chaos.

 Cult 
The Late Period is the period when its popularity grew among the Egyptian people, who, associating it with the god Bes from the 22nd Dynasty of Egypt onwards, exports it throughout the Eastern Mediterranean in the Hellenistic period.

 Related pages 
 Ptah 

 Notes 

 Bibliography 
 Philippe Germond, "The Symbolic World of Egyptian Amulets: From the Jacques-Édouard Berger Collection," Éditions 5 Continents, 2005; 
 Alain-Pierre Zivie, Memphis and its Necropolises in the New Kingdom, Éditions du CNRS, 1988. 

 Other websites 


Category:Egyptian gods and goddesses
Category:Ancient Egyptian religion
Category:Index Egyptological
Category:Egyptian Deity
Category:Dwarfism