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In The Ring of Solomon, Bartimaeus puts on the titular artifact and summons the Spirit of the Ring, Uraziel. Fearing how the Spirit might react to seeing someone other than Solomon wearing the Ring, Bartimaeus takes Solomon's form.

It hadn’t escaped my notice that when Khaba had summoned him, the Spirit of the Ring had sounded slightly irritable not to see Solomon. Hence my clever disguise.

—The Ring of Solomon

Of course, the spirit of the Ring, being more powerful even than a marid, sees through his disguise with ease.

However, previously we have seen that even a mid-level djinni such as Bartimaeus can see on all seven planes, and on the seventh Bartimaeus's true form is clearly visible. Why would Bartimaeus have believed that his disguise could possibly fool such a powerful spirit?

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Adamant
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    Maybe he wanted to put the Spirit of the Ring at ease at least initially, when it first emerged and checked the first plane. – Rand al'Thor Jul 11 '16 at 08:28
  • @Rand'alThor - ...but the Spirit probably sees all planes simultaneously, unlike a mere djinni. That could be an answer. – Adamant Jul 11 '16 at 08:29
  • Any evidence for it seeing all planes simultaneously, or is that just speculation since it's mega-powerful? – Rand al'Thor Jul 11 '16 at 08:32
  • @Randal'Thor - It says it has the ability to see through all Illusions, and it affects all the planes simultaneously. Speculation, but informed. Especially, saying that it has the ability to see through all Illusions would not make much sense if it merely could switch between planes like many spirits. – Adamant Jul 11 '16 at 08:34
  • May be Bartimaeus was simply too tired to be thinking straight...he did just get chased by the shadow... – Abhinav Jul 11 '16 at 14:10

1 Answers1

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I think it is because Bartimaeus was:

a) Currently dying from the rings energy which probably addled his brain.

b) Desperate for anything to save himself and stop Ammet. If there was a chance it would work he was going to try it.

c) Some spirits who had not been on earth in a long time/are confident in how op they are don't check the planes. Bartimaeus says this of Honorious in The Golem's Eye.

You could tell Honorious was far gone by the fact that he evidently hadn't bothered checking through the planes. If he had, he'd have seen that I was an imp only on the first three planes. On the rest, I was Bartimaeus, in all my lustrous glory.

—The Golem's Eye

Bartimaeus also points out Ammet's lack of caution earlier in the chase suggesting the powerful spirits don't take caution possibly including checking the planes.

But Ammet, Khaba’s lapdog, probably hadn’t done a decent day’s work in twenty years, and had forgotten, if he ever knew, the importance of extreme caution.

—The Ring of Solomon

From The Ring of Solomon during the chase between Ammet and Bartimaeus.

d) Bartimaeus can cover himself on 7 planes to some level.

Trudge, trudge, hobble, hobble—that was Faquarl and I doing our best to project an aura of human vulnerability. To cloak our actual potency, we’d made the change on five planes, and used Glamours to shield our true natures on the other two.

—The Ring of Solomon

This is during the desert scene in Ring of Solomon.

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    Point (d) is nice. I had not realized that concealment was possible on the seventh. Could you cite that (and ideally the other quotes), so that readers know which book it is from? – Adamant Jul 11 '16 at 18:20
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    Sure, also 7th plane concealment isn't great. Farqual fools a folios and Marids can prevent Bartimaeus seeing them on 7th but Farqual notes that to fox him or Bartimaeus on seventh the creature must be powerful. – Bellerophon Jul 11 '16 at 18:28