Cats in Ancient Egyptian Culture
Back to the mummy sculptures to create a surprise the cat mummy used as amulet to the gods in ancient Egypt. X-rays of cat mummy in the statues that archaeologists have found and analyzed. In this new study scientists have revealed a new way to look inside the fragile mummy using a type of X-ray.
An important pet in ancient Egyptian culture cats were used to chase rats and snakes and to ward off evil spirits that threatened the afterlife. In the symbol of the gods that were used as mummies the era of the destructive power of the serpent Apophis the evil that destroyed nature and man. The cat mummy in the elaborate sculptures through the ritual worship of the god Bastet is linked to the god Ra or called the cat coffin. Most of the discoveries of ancient Egyptian cats were found in the underground necropolis at Beni Hasan in Middle Egypt. In the past it was seen that cats would be wrapped in linen cloth with writing in black ink on the cloth in ritual messages to express gratitude to the gods.
Egyptian bronze cat sculpture
Ritual of the god Bastet in Bubastis
Cat mummies in popular culture were created in the Ptolemaic period 305-30 BC. X-rays are the lightest and most visible method of showing the inside. Bronze cat statues related to lions symbols of the god Jabasate or Sekhmet small kittens who drove away rats and snakes were created in the festivals of the goddess's cult. The size of the cat will indicate its natural age and the objects of worship of gods and pharaohs in the symbols of cats and lions. The nature of cats in ancient Egypt looking back is different from the present which is popularly used to drive away insects and small animals and to make the owner feel attached to the cat. It is different from the past which is also a valuable animal that is mummified. We see the sacrifice of cats in ancient Egypt and the value of the life of cats that are raised today. In the past, the Ptolemaic era changed the culture that is clearly visible in the god Basate, who is a gentle symbol goddess with the ruler of the Egyptian empire. Bronze cat mummy sarcophagus in the statue Cats are said to be around the 1st century AD and in the past mummification was used in punishments to bury cats or snakes with the bodies of those who were punished. Another way of mummifying cats was to protect the dead as if they were still alive.
X-ray of an ancient Egyptian cat sarcophagus with a cat mummy inside.
Ptolemaic period, 305-30 BC. Now in the Manchester Museum. [640x426]
Cats in Ancient Egyptian Culture The ancient Egyptians raised cats for breeding which were brought to be raised to the point of being mummified in ancient Egypt. In the sarcophagus sculptures exquisite cat statues. Today bronze cat sarcophagi in sculptures or cats used for mummification wrapped in linen and materials alternately wrapped with materials in ancient times. The exhibition organized by the museum is also dedicated to cats and dogs. The many roles of cats in ancient Egyptian culture. These characteristics of cats combined with the independence of cats and the fierce nature of some cats, made cats animals associated with the pharaohs and gods of ancient Egypt. Cats were not the only animals that were mummified in ancient Egypt. Mummification of animals snakes and birds crocodiles but cats were the most commonly mummified animals in ancient Egypt.
During the period when European culture was popular in the 19th century from the past that was seen as the resurrection of animals to the afterlife, the creation of mummies from small animals such as cats snakes birds was like creating a ritual process to make small animals more sacred. In the time of ancient Egypt the use of cats that had important symbolic value began to decrease.
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