The Female Side of God: Art and Ritual

The female deity throughout centuries of religious history

In the polytheistic world of the ancient Near East, there was a widespread belief in the existence of female deities. Such deities also played a role in the development of biblical monotheism, but were increasingly removed from the ritual practices of ancient Judaism. Various passages in the Hebrew Bible also attribute special powers to female figures. The entity that is considered most directly divine is the Shekinah, which is described in rabbinic Judaism as the "dwelling of God on Earth" and in Jewish mysticism as the creative aspect of God. The idea of a female side of God replaced that of a divine female partner, as documented by numerous archeological finds and textual sources.

The Female Side of God takes archaeological artifacts from the Near East―religious writings, ceremonial objects, textiles―depicting female deities to examine this question, also looking at the rediscovery of this tradition in contemporary artworks.