A Monkey Figurine from Tel Beth Shemesh

This paper presents a unique clay figurine found at Tel Beth Shemesh, Judah, in a late Iron Age II context. The figurine portrays a monkey-faced horse, a combination that is rare in the ancient Near East and unknown, so far, from Judah. Comparisons are sought, followed by a discussion of the Monkey in small representations in the ancient Near East and Mesopotamia. Monkeys were exotic, held as pet animals by the higher classes and related to sex, music, ugliness, lack of intelligence, and various other human characteristics. It is suggested that the significance of this figurine lies in such 'secular' connotations, rather than in a religious realm