Lamashtu

In Mesopotamian religion, the most terrible of all female demons.

The daughter of the sky god Anu, Lamashtu killed children, consumed human flesh and blood, blighted plants, spoiled rivers and streams, sent nightmares, caused miscarriages, and brought disease. She had seven names and was often described in incantations as "seven witches." She was portrayed on amulets as a lion-or bird-headed female figure kneeling on an ass, holding a double-headed serpent in each hand and suckling dogs or pigs at her breasts.

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▪ Mesopotamian demon

(Akkadian), Sumerian  Dimme 

      in Mesopotamian religion, the most terrible of all female demons, daughter of the sky god Anu (Sumerian: An). A wicked female who slew children and drank the blood of men and ate their flesh, she had seven names and was often described in incantations as the “seven witches.” Lamashtu perpetrated a variety of evil deeds: she disturbed sleep and brought nightmares; she killed foliage and infested rivers and streams; she bound the muscles of men, caused pregnant women to miscarry, and brought disease and sickness. Lamashtu was often portrayed on amulets as a lion- or bird-headed female figure kneeling on an ass; she held a double-headed serpent in each hand and suckled a dog at her right breast and a pig or another dog at her left breast.

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