Bes Vase

An Egyptian drinking vessel from 300BCE - 300CE
Syrian Rue, Blue Lotus, Cleome, Wine, Blood, Vaginal or Oral Mucus, Breast Milk, Sesame, Licorice, Royal Jelly

a) Drinking vessel in shape of Bes head from the El-Fayūm Oasis, Egypt, courtesy of the Tampa Museum of Art, Florida. b) Bes mug from the Ghalioungui collection. c) Bes mug from the Allard Pierson Museum, courtesy of the Allard Pierson Museum, Amsterdam, photo by Stephan van der Linden. d) Bes mug from El-Fayum. Photo: USF

An Ancient Egyptian Mug at the Tampa Museum of Art Once Held Psychotropic Drugs, Human Blood, and Bodily Fluids, Research Reveals (article)

Summary

Researchers analyzing residue from a small ceramic Bes-headed ritual mug in the collection of the Tampa Museum of Art discovered evidence that it once contained a complex psychoactive and bodily mixture used in ritual contexts.

Using proteomics, metabolomics, genetic assays, and synchrotron-based FTIR spectroscopy, the team identified:

Psychoactive plants (notably Peganum harmala and Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea)
Fermented fruit liquid (likely grape-based yeast water)
Human biological materials (blood, mucus consistent with oral or vaginal origin, and breast milk)
Supplementary ritual substances (sesame, licorice, royal jelly)

The vessel dates to the Ptolemaic–Roman period (ca. 3rd c. BCE – 3rd c. CE) and was reportedly found in the El-Fayum Oasis, an area well known for hybrid Egyptian–Greek religious practices.

The authors argue the mug was not decorative but actively used in ritual ingestion, most likely in ceremonies associated with Bes, a household protector, childbirth guardian, and apotropaic figure who became increasingly ritualized and deified in late Egyptian religion.

The study was published as a preprint on Research Square and has not yet undergone formal peer review.

Reconstructed ritual contents

(descriptive reconstruction — not a recipe or instructions)

Based solely on residue analysis, the ritual mixture appears to have included:

1. Psychoactive / entheogenic components

Peganum harmala (Syrian rue)Source of harmala alkaloids (MAO-inhibiting, visionary, trance-inducing)
Blue lotus (Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea)Mildly narcotic, euphoric, dream-enhancing; well attested in Egyptian ritual art
Cleome speciesMedicinal / bioactive plant used in antiquity, possibly synergistic

2. Fermentation & solvent medium

Fruit-derived yeast water (likely grape)A low-alcohol carrier capable of extracting and preserving alkaloids

3. Human biological substances (symbolic + pharmacological)

Human blood
Mucosal secretions (oral or vaginal)
Breast milk

These are consistent with sympathetic, reproductive, protective, and initiatory symbolism in Egyptian ritual medicine rather than culinary or casual use.

4. Supporting ritual additives

Sesame (oil/fat carrier)
Licorice (flavor, medicinal synergy)
Royal jelly (fertility, vitality symbolism)

Important: The study does not claim standardized proportions, preparation steps, or frequency—only that these substances were present together in at least one vessel.

Why Bes? Ritual logic

Bes is not a distant cosmic god but a threshold guardian:

Protector of childbirth and infants
Apotropaic figure against malevolent forces
Associated with music, altered states, and liminality
Common in domestic shrines and ingestive rituals

A Bes-shaped drinking vessel strongly implies:

Embodied protection during vulnerability (birth, trance, initiation)
Ingestion as ritual action, not symbolic offering alone
Controlled altered states rather than recreational intoxication

Additional research context (beyond the article)

1. This is not an isolated case

Blue lotus appears repeatedly in banquet, funerary, and priestly iconography
Harmala alkaloids are attested across Egypt, Persia, and the Levant
Egyptian medical papyri frequently blur medicine, magic, and ritual

2. Biological fluids in ancient ritual

Blood, milk, and sexual fluids appear in:
- Egyptian medical-magical texts
- Greco-Egyptian magical papyri (PGM)
- Mediterranean initiation rites tied to fertility and protection
These substances functioned as potent symbolic carriers, and/or may indicate results from a sexual rite

3. Faiyum as a syncretic hotspot

Strong Greek–Egyptian religious blending
Cult activity persisting into Roman rule
Ideal environment for hybrid pharmaco-ritual traditions

4. Scholarly significance

This study is important because:

It provides direct chemical evidence, not iconographic inference
It confirms intentional psychoactive ingestion
It challenges the idea that Egyptian religion was purely symbolic or non-experiential

Bottom line

This Bes mug almost certainly functioned as a ritual ingestion vessel containing a carefully composed psychoactive and symbolic mixture used in protective, reproductive, or initiatory ceremonies.

It supports a growing scholarly view that ancient Egyptian religion included controlled altered-state practices, integrating pharmacology, bodily symbolism, and ritual guidance into a unified system.