The function of cats
Most of what we know about the function of cats comes from scenes depicted in paintings on the wall of tombs.
- In the scenes, cats are shown laying or sitting below chairs, playing or chasing after birds.
- In some mortuary texts, they are also shown with a dagger, cutting through the snake deity Apopis, who threatens the sun god Ra.
- In the Tomb of Nebamun, one painting shows a cat accompanying Nebamun while fishing and fowling.
9 STASHED
MORE IDEAS FROM THE ARTICLE
Ancient Egyptians held cats in high regard, not just because of the preferences of their gods, but also because the pharaohs kept giant cats.
Egyptians considered cats smart, quick and powerful. The lioness goddess, Sekhmet, was a warrior and protector deity that kept away illness and sickness and also kept the enemies of the sun god Ra at bay.
Cats were also viewed as possessing the power of fertility. They were shown sitting under women's chairs, implying a connection to women and perhaps fertility.
9 STASHED
1 LIKE
The ancient Egyptians believed their gods could assume different forms. The gods could appear with the head of a cat and also inhabit the bodies of cats.
For this reason, cats were mummified, creating a whole economy around breeding and mummifying cats.
10 STASHED
1 LIKE
Cats feature in ancient Egyptian art. It reflects the cat's unique status among people who lived along the Nile River.
Cats were first seen as beneficial predators but later became symbols of divinity and protection. While ancient Egyptians did not worship animals, they did see them as representations of divine aspects of their gods.
11 STASHED
3 LIKES
RELATED IDEAS
Movie mummies are known for riches and a nasty curse. However, Hollywood didn't invent the curse concept.
- Egyptologist Dominic Montserrat believed that a lively stage show in which real Egyptian mummies were unwrapped inspired writers to pen tales of mummy revenge.
- Egyptologist Salima Ikram believes the curse concept did exist in ancient Egypt as part of a primitive security system. Some early non-pyramid tomb walls (mastaba) in Giza and Saqqara were inscribed with curses meant to terrify those who would desecrate the resting place.
10 STASHED
Ancient Egypt has exerted power of influence on the world of learning for over two millennia.
The Greek historian Herodotus identified the pyramids at Giza as places of royal burial, but his works did not help 19th Century scholars in understanding ancient Egyptian writing. Greek and Roman writers could not read hieroglyphs either.
16 STASHED
One of the earliest known board games, Senet was played in 3100 BC and loved by Queen Nefertari and the Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
Played using a longboard having three rows of ten squares each, the players used a combination of luck and strategy to rush to the end of the board while blocking the other player from doing so. The game achieved a ritualistic, crystal ball-like significance among the people of Egypt.
121 STASHED
3 LIKES
❤️ Brainstash Inc.