A Mesopotamian demon’s statue is falsely shared as archaeologists finding statue of Allah in Saudi Arabia
A viral social media post (here, here, and here) is circulating with the claim that archaeologists have found artefacts in the Saudi Arabia desert, which match the description of Allah in the Quran and Hadith. In this article, we investigate the claim and uncover the true origins of the statue.
Claim: Archaeologists have found a statue of Allah in the desert of Saudi Arabia based on the Quran and Hadith.
Fact: The statue is actually related to Mesopotamian religion, representing Pazuzu, the king of wind demons. Pazuzu, considered the son of Hanpa and brother of Humbaba, was believed to protect humans from other demons. Hence, the claim that the statue represents Allah is FALSE.
To trace the origin of the viral image, we conducted a reverse image search and found an article, dated 27 May 2020. The article featured the viral idol image with the caption “Pazuzu Demon Superstar.” According to the piece, the statue represents Pazuzu, an ancient Assyrian demon introduced to the world in 1971 as the entity responsible for possessing Regan McNeil in William Peter Blatty’s novel The Exorcist. The demon was later brought to life on screen in 1973 in the film adaptation, directed by William Friedkin.
Further research led us to the trailer of The Exorcist on YouTube, where the same statue appears, confirming its use in the 1973 film. This statue, representing the demon Pazuzu, plays a significant role in the movie’s plot.
We also found a detailed study on Pazuzu in the Britannica Encyclopaedia, which traces its roots to Mesopotamian religion. Pazuzu, the king of wind demons, was considered the son of Hanpa and brother of Humbaba (Huwawa). In Mesopotamian belief, Pazuzu helped humans ward off other demons, making representations of his face popular as protective amulets in the first millennium BCE across the Middle East.
To sum up, a Mesopotamian demon’s statue is falsely shared as archaeologists finding a statue in the Saudi Arabian desert that represents Allah.