After a long break since my first attempt at sculpting (the Book Trolls), I have returned to make a gift for a friend: Bes, the ancient Egyptian-turned-Mesopotamian dwarf-god of play, music, dance, and sexual pleasure. He was a very popular house god. Put him in your home and he wards off evil and will fight off snakes and demons. And he also just seems like he would be great fun to hang out with.

I first came across him in the book Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia: An Illustrated Dictionary by Jeremy Black and Anthony Green while doing research for my bronze age novel. Since then I have seen and read about many different versions, all wonderful, but the one that always stuck with me was the first. So that’s what I based mine on.

I made no attempt to make it “professional”, or sleek or perfect, which I feel many people pursue in our 3D printing world. I wanted it to feel rough, crude, and hand-made, and to look like something dug up out of the earth.

So I dipped it in coffee, rolled it in coffee grounds, and then weathered it with acrylic paints diluted in water. Overall, I am very happy with it, even though there are areas I could have done a much better job.

I hope to do more sculpting, and not wait years this time to come back to it.