He is imagined as an especially frightening figure capable of scaring off any lesser demon or ghost. Pazuzu is represented in statuettes and engravings with bulging eyes in a canine face, a scaly body, snake-headed penis, the talons of a large bird, and enormous wings. In the opening scenes of The Exorcist he is depicted accurately in the life-sized statue the priest looks upon in the ancient city of Hatra.

Bael, Baal god, Demon statue, Altar statue, Satan statue Goetia, Baphomet statue Sigil of baal Lucifer Belial Lucifuge Rofocale Wood carving If you have had an experience working with Pazuzu, I would love to hear about this experience – good, bad, or other. Likewise, share your thoughts on Pazuzu, The Exorcist movie, or demon portrayal. In The Exorcist television series, Pazuzu in its natural form is portrayed by Robert Emmet Lunney. Its victims are an older Regan, portrayed by Geena Davis, and Regan's daughter Casey, portrayed by Hannah Kasulka. Hanpu is his father. He has many a connection to other wind deities, namely Lamashtu and the Lilû demons, other protective demons, as well as the foreign Egyptian dwarf deity Bes.

Depictions Of Pazuzu In Ancient Mesopotamian Art And Culture

Some Rights Reserved (2009-2023) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license unless otherwise noted. This might be evidence of a flub in filmmaking or an issue with continuity, but before the infamous crucifix scene involving Regan, it's easy to see the crucifix located elsewhere in the house. While I was researching for information on the demon Pazuzu, I was quite surprised at how little information there actually is on this demon, since he is the star demon of the Exorcist movies. Pazuzu was portrayed as the demon responsible for human possession and devastating mayhem in all of the Exorcist franchises movies.

Like Pazuzu, Humbaba was used as a protector deity, with depictions of his frightening head being used to ward off evil. [23] It could therefore be speculated that the Pazuzu heads replaced those of Humbaba. [23] Humbaba fell from favour in the Late Bronze Age, [12] shortly before Pazuzu emerged, although the two do not share any great iconographic connection, [17] making it unlikely that Pazuzu could have evolved from the earlier deity. As Christianity swept across the world, the devout no longer had a need for protective demons, and Christians naturally wanted belief in the old ways to disappear in favor of their new monotheistic religion. Demons of the old faith were relegated to Hell — after all, anything from the underworld had no place in the holy world of Heaven. Accomplished radio actress Mercedes McCambridge was responsible for voicing Regan while she was possessed. The voice is enough to give audiences the chills, but creating it wasn't an easy process. David Hewlett (voice) Pazuzu is the main antagonist and demon of The Exorcist horror novels and film series, created by William Peter Blatty. Blatty derived the character from Assyrian and Babylonian mythology, where Pazuzu was considered the king of the demons of the wind, and the son of the god Hanbi. In The Exorcist, Pazuzu appears as a demon who possesses Regan MacNeil. Author William Peter Blatty based the character loosely on Gerald Lankester Harding, the British archaeologist most well-known for excavating the caves where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in modern-day Palestine, as well as overseeing their preservation and study. With this source of inspiration, it's fitting that we first meet Merrin on a dig, and his encounter with the Pazuzu statue takes on greater significance when we later learn that he previously conducted an exorcism in Africa that almost cost his life.In the novel, the author shows the priest handling a small statue of Pazuzu, not gazing upon a large figure, and this is also accurate. Although small statuettes of the demon have been found at Hatra, no full-sized statues have ever been found anywhere and it is unlikely they ever will be. Depictions of demons or deities associated with the underworld are rare because it was thought that, in creating such an image, one attracted the attention of the subject. As such, not all demons were necessarily evil, and even those who were, like Pazuzu, often had several layers of complexity to their personalities. Depictions Of Pazuzu In Ancient Mesopotamian Art And Culture Lucifer statue, Satan statue, Lucifer Series, Occultism, satanism, Fallen angel satan, Lucifer Morningstar, Lilith Goddess, Samael statue