Egyptian animal cults

ABSTRACT: This lecture covers the period succeeding the First Persian occupation of Egypt, and including the Second Persian Occupation, namely Dynasties 28-31: (1). Independent Late Period Egypt, Dyns.28-30: ca. 404–343 BC; (2). Dynasty 28: 404-399 BC, King Amyrtaeus (II); (3). Dynasty 29: 399-380 BC: Kings Nepherites I; x (Muthis?); Hakor (Achoris); Nepherites II; (4). Dynasty 30: 380-343 BC; Kings Nectanebo I; Teos (Tachos); Nectanebo II; (5). The Second Persian Occupation: “Dynasty 31”: 343-342 BC; Kings Artaxerxes III (Ochus); Arses; Darius III (Codoman); and concluding with (6). The advent of the Macedonian Dynasty: Alexander the Great. The lecture then proceeds with a brief examination of other Aspects of Late Period Egypt (especially Dyns.27-31), including (a). An Overview of various broad aspects and trends; (b). Sculpture; (c). private burials and mummification; animal cults and animal mummification; and (e). International Relations, At the end of the lecture, I provide some selected sources on Late Period Egypt, primarily Dyns.27-31, and some selected sources on Alexander the Great.

As Meeks (1986, iii) remarks “l’animalité…forme une des trames essentielles du polithéisme égypthien”. However, while the variety of animal imagery in iconography/literature is acknowledged as a visual metaphor, animal worship – the actual involvement of living creatures in ritual practice – still confronts us with a curious contradiction: commonly perceived as one of the most qualifying features of Egyptian religion, since Herodotus it has strongly impressed our Western kulturelle Gedächtnis; on the other hand, it is (dis)regarded as a marginal phenomenon both on historical and interpretative ground. Such a contradiction arises from two structural deficits: lack of a theoretical framework, resulting in an anachronistic repetition of paradigms of classical/biblical derivation; lack of a historical perspective, producing drastic simplifications in the evaluation of the phenomenon and its articulation. The present paper will try to explore new approaches, detailing their potentialities in relation to specific sets of textual and material data. The goal is threefold: to prove that ritual practices focused around the involvement of specific individuals or groups of animals occurred along all the pharaonic period; to show how their integration into the formal culture, i.e. their elaboration in the monumental discourse according to the rules of decorum allows to sketch important historical caesuras; to outline a historical-religious synthesis of the phenomenon, emphasizing continuities and changes over time.

Religious Practice and Cultural Construction of Animal Worship in Egypt from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom presents an articulated historical interpretation of Egyptian ‘animal worship’ – intended as a segment of religious practice focused on the mobilisation of selected animals within strategically designed ritual contexts – from the Early Dynastic to the New Kingdom, and offers a new understanding of its chronological development through a fresh review of pertinent archaeological and textual data. The goal is twofold: (1) to re-conceptualise the notion of ‘animal worship’ on firm theoretical and material bases, reassessing its heuristic value as a
tool for analysis; (2) to demonstrate, accordingly, that ‘animal worship’ did not represent a late degeneration of traditional religion, socially (popular cult) and thematically (animal mummies and burials) restricted, but a complex domain of religious practice with a longer history and a larger variety of configurations than usually assumed.

For a long time religious-historical investigation concerning the worship of one of the most important deities of the
Egyptian pantheon, the goddess Bastet, was largely based on assumptions. Despite this theriomorphic deity having always generated
interest among the scientific community, an in-depth archaeological and historical-religious analysis has never been conducted.
The systematic study of previously unpublished bronzes kept in the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest has made it possible
to establish an initial typological variety, and clarify the function of some artefacts and their cultural significance. The material,
particularly heterogeneous, consists of sarcophagi and caskets for cat mummies, zoomorphic and anthropomorphic ailurocephalic
statuettes of the goddess, and zoomorphic heads. The study was based on techniques and material workmanship, iconographic
patterns and comparison with similar finds, kept in various Egyptian collections.

Votive mummies of cats were offered at the shrines of particular gods, to whom these animals were sacred. They played an important role in Egyptian religion during the Late and Greco-Roman periods and represent an important source on the popular beliefs and practices of ordinary Egyptians at the twilight of their civilisation. For many years, this subject was neglected and a large number of animal mummies were simply destroyed. However, many specimens of unknown origin are still preserved in collections around the world, which allows further research to be conducted upon them.
After the Second World War, the National Museum in Warsaw received five such artefacts. Their exact provenience, archaeological context and the precise time of their execution is unknown. In April 2011, an x-ray examination of the artefacts was conducted by Łukasz Przewłocki, Wojciech Ejsmond (students at the Institute of Archaeology, Warsaw University) and Dr. Monika Dolińska (curator of the Egyptian collection at the National Museum in Warsaw).
This paper presents an interpretation of these objects in the wider context of animal mummies and also provides a description of the results of their recent examination. All the specimens can be dated to the Greco-Roman period (332 BC-AD 390) with the exception of one, which probably dates to an earlier time. There are some unusual aspects to the group, such as the presence of a human tooth in one specimen and traces of restoration carried out at an unknown date in other one.

Since the Early Dynastic Period, Bastet was worshipped as a lion-headed goddess. She continued to be represented in this way in the Old Kingdom. Indeed, she was depicted on reliefs of the royal mortuary complexes as the protector of the Lower Egyptian celestial vault and, like her counterpart Hathor, she played the role of royal nurse as well as being the protector of the king and kingship. At the same time, she was the aggressive lioness, guarding her children from enemies. Therefore, the protective nature of the goddess was associated with a more combative side, which became typical of the kings, especially during the Middle and New Kingdom.
The leonine aspect of the goddess was generally associated with an official context, perhaps because the image of the lion has always suggested the idea of power, order, and stability: all qualities connected with the concept of kingship.But, from the Ist millennium BC Bastet was frequently associated also with cats. As predator of pests, cats, very common animals in Egypt, were often kept in Egyptian households as cherished pets. This way, people could observe the cats’ other qualities, such as fertility. Therefore, cats played the same role as Bastet as protector of families, children and women. The evolution of popular religion into a deeper sense was the basis for this association. From this moment, the cat became an aspect of the goddess, which didn’t contrast with the earlier lion.
Therefore, Bastet was worshipped in two ways associated with the two aspects of the goddess. The aim of this speech is to analyse the interaction and, in some periods, coexistence between the two theriomorphic forms of the goddess.

At the beginning of 1900, A. Charron and L. Ginsburg dedicated two articles to examining 16 cat necropoleis. In the early 2000s, S. Ikram identified 9 more cat necropoleis. However, the information provided was reduced to a basic list with short captions and no bibliographic indication.
The analysis of the archaeological and epigraphic sources concerning these 25 "known" necropoleis led to finding six more cat necropolis not included in any earlier articles.
Malek had previously identified different kinds of cat necropoleis on the basis of building techniques, but the exam of the data on these archaeological sites has allowed me the opportunity to identified different categories.
The aim of this speech is to present the results of my study on cat necropoleis, their typological analysis and their nature not only of funerary deposits, but also as real areas of worship and pilgrimage, where the offerings were kept for eternity.

The article lists the occurrences of the Egyptian word Hdr, which so far has remained and enigmatic term for some kind of animal. Mainly on the basis of the analogies with other words, it is argued here that this animal is not an aardwolf but rather a pig or a wild boarr. In support of this, a number of examples are cited from various Semitic languages of the Ancient Near East.

The name of Bastet is shown in written sources from the Early Dynastic Period to the Greek-Roman Period, and it has many different graphic forms. Phonetically, two forms of the name have been proposed: Ebastet and Webastet. But its exact etymology is still unknown.
Some scholars proposed that the origin of the name comes from the toponym BAst. This hypothesis was probably based on the antiquity of the toponym, dated back to the Naqada IIIa2, and from the important amount of both historical and archaeological information about its Bubasteion.
However, the differences between the spelling of the toponym and the name of the goddess, that since the first half of the third millennium BC was often written using the sign bAs, suggests that the name of Bastet was linked to her protective role as guardian of DfA.w and grg.w. This is confirmed by some brief inscriptions on fragments of stone vases found in the Memphite necropolis. These finds and many other sources indicate Memphis as the oldest and perhaps the main place of worship of Bastet, at least until a certain period. 
The aim of this speech is to analyse the graphic forms of the name of the goddess and the archaeological sources connected to its diffusion in order to attain a coherent idea about its geographical origin.

The article presents some thoughts about the cosmetic palette New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Acc.-No. 10.176.78 and a new interpretation of the piece. It can be interpreted as a depiction of a two-headed turtle, a representation of a real-life reptile. It dates back to the fourth millennium BC and for this reason, the depiction of dicephalic animals can count as very old. This interpretation can be expanded to palettes depicting two-headed birds.

L’assonance des mots rmwt et rmw, larmes et poissons, est une partie du symbolisme du voyage vers une nouvelle vie. L’importance des larmes dans la mythologie égyptienne  ne regarde pas seulement leur caractère créatif et régénérant mais aussi les jeux de mots et de significations mis en acte dans les textes. Dans le Livre de Nut (Papyrus Carlsberg I) des larmes, en tombant dans l’eau du Duat, se transforment en poissons qui se purifient à travers l’eau même, pour s’élever dans le ciel en forme d’étoiles. Le texte évoque un rituel de passage comparable à celui de la lamentation  funèbre où les larmes deviennent un moment incontournable pour rejoindre la vie éternelle. Les larmes devenues poissons ne sont que le symbole du défunt qui doit voyager dans l’au-delà pour se purifier. Même si d’époque très tardive, le papyrus Carlsberg ne fait que rappeler des conceptions bien enracinés dans la pensée  égyptienne. Le soi-disant « wasserberg », souvent représenté sur les parois des tombes, avec les deux poissons, abdw et inet, symboles des deux étapes de la renaissance, le défunt momifié et le défunt revivant, ne fait que rappeler le texte du papyrus. En effet le culte des poissons est bien attesté dès l’Ancien Empire grâce à le mythe et surtout à la découverte de poissons momifiés, amulettes et d’autres objets  de culte retrouvés dans les temples et les tombes et qui prouvent la liaison entre mythe et culte funéraire.
A travers l’analyse des textes et du symbolisme du poisson dans la religion et l’art égyptiens, sans oublier les rituels funéraires, on veut expliquer comment les larmes et les poissons sont devenus symboles de vie et surtout deux éléments d’une dichotomie qui précède et, au même temps, représente le moment de la renaissance.

Tuna el-Gebel is situated about 300 km south of Cairo, in Middle Egypt, on the western side of
the Nile. It is the necropolis of Hermopolis Magna, ancient capital of the 15th nome and cult centre
of Thot, god of writing and sciences. The archaeological site of Tuna el-Gebel is particularly known for
its Greco-Roman necropolis and the ibiotapheion, one of the largest animal cemeteries of pharaonic
Egypt. In the course of almost a millennium, millions of ibises and baboons, representing the god
Thot, were buried in the vast catacombs. Since 1989, the objectives of the Tuna el-Gebel project at
the Institute for Egyptology and Coptology of the Ludwig Maximilian University Munich, working
in cooperation with the Faculty of Archaeology of Cairo University, have been to explore the
architectural development of the animal cemetery and related religious and administrative buildings.
Since 2002 the principal investigations have been concentrate on the site to the east of the
underground galleries. A processional way leads from the animal necropolis to the remains of
the ancient town, the Kom el-Loli, where priests and craftsmen of the religious association of the
animal cemetery had lived. The preliminary plan of the geophysical prospection of this area, conducted
by the University of Kiel, revealed that, to the north and south of this processional way, huge
mud-brick building complexes lay side by side under sand mounds. Five of these complexes, two
of the northern and three of the southern row, have been excavated in the past years (Figs 2, 3). All
these building complexes — only foundations, sometimes basements, and rarely ground floors have
been preserved consist of one to three tower houses surrounded by smaller annex houses as well as
numerous production facilities— like bakeries, siloses and animal stables. The earliest buildings
date to the reign of Ptolemy I, an important phase for the architectural and cultic development of
the animal cemetery. Several cult places, almost identical to the ritual places of the animal cemetery,
were discovered in some houses. A second construction phase of the tower houses dates to the reign
of Ptolemy VI. Some buildings were in use until Roman times. The square-plan tower houses of Tuna
el-Gebel had probably five floors and were constructed with undulating walls and vaulted ceilings.
Although most of the building complexes were either excavated or looted at the end of the 19th
century, plenty of ceramics, organic and botanic materials, artefacts of daily life and religious objects
were discovered in the course of the excavations (Arnold 2000). Domestic courtyards consisted of
production and kitchen areas equipped with siloses, ovens, mills and bread moulds.
a Bavarian State Department for Monuments and Sites (BLfD), Ref. ZII Archaeological Prospection,

In 2014, during the refurbishment of the Museum of the Società Africana d’Italia, five cat mummies were found. They were part of the
heterogeneous collection of the Società Africana d’Italia (SAI), a cultural association, founded in 1880. A member of the SAI, a lawyer, called
Alfonso Donnabella, who was in Mansura during the first few months of 1890, sent the mummies to Naples. They were put on display in the
Colonial Museum of the SAI and passed on to the Rectorate of the University of Naples ‘L’Orientale’, when it became responsible for the whole
collection of the Società. This discovery has given us the possibility to clarify some peculiarities of late 19th century collecting trends which
were influenced by colonial policies of that time. Collaboration with other specialists, as well as the use of technical instruments, such as X-rays
and CT-scans, have helped to identify the causes of death, the approximate age of the cats and the presence of some amulets inside the bandages.
Moreover, some anomalies suggest that two of the five subjects are pseudo-mummies. Analysis of the decoration and wrappings has helped us
to understand what kind of mummification technique was employed and the function of these votive mummies. Furthermore, a comparison
with similar finds, housed in other Egyptological collections, has helped us to determine the origin and the chronology of each mummy. In this
paper I will discuss the results of a preliminary investigation of these mummies, the study of which is still in progress. This work, thanks to an
interdisciplinary collaboration between different institutions with different competencies, has given us a great deal of information that has
furthered our knowledge of the cult of these sacred animals, a subject which is still open to debate.

In 2014 professors, researchers and PhD Candidates from the University of Naples “L’Orientale” worked together to set up the Museo della Società Africana d’Italia (SAI), an institution which seeks to preserve and display the collections of African cultural heritage  acquired by the Society since the 1880’s. Research of the collection led to the discovery of five Egyptian cat mummies among the huge quantity of preserved materials. This discovery became the starting point for a successful collaboration between several Institutions, including Museums, Universities and diagnostic centres.
The Egyptological research phase was focused on a survey of the archives in order to obtain archaeographic data on the mummies. The analysis of both the documentary and photographic archives has provided essential sources about when, from whom, and, possibly, where the five cat mummies were acquired. Consequently, this information was compared with animal mummies from well-known contextual data, such as specimens emerging from ongoing archaeological surveys, alongside other examples held in the most important Egyptian collections around the world. A second stage of this research project saw the involvement of specialists with the aim of further enriching the knowledge of the cat mummies dataset. The Interdepartmental Centre for Veterinary Radiology of the University of Naples “Federico II” performed radiographic examinations (X-rays and CT-scans), thus providing important information on the mummification techniques, position of the skeletons, cause of death, identification of age, sex, and pathologies.  Further investigation included diagnostic and chemical analyses, which were carried out with the help of the R.A.V.A Scientific Analysis Center (Aosta), the Department of Chemical Science of the University of Naples “Federico II”, and the Eurac Research Center (Bolzano). The analyses undertaken by these institutions accomplished an in-depth examination of the fibres used in the textiles; an investigation of the nature of the inorganic particles found on the mummies; and an ADN analysis in order to identify the species, respectively. Radiocarbon dating, which was performed by Beta Analytic Limited (London), showed the precise chronology of these finds. Moreover, 3D photogrammetry increased our knowledge of the mummification techniques used.  Alongside this it offered an opportunity to compare the examples on many levels under study and it was a useful additional tool for the new exhibition of the mummies. Restoration work continued to preserve the mummies, which was also an opportunity to analyse in depth the wrapping techniques and bandage materials.
As the final phase of this research path, the aim of this paper is to show how interdisciplinary approaches and the networks formed between scientists and scholars of the humanities  were undoubtedly the best way forward to open new fields of study in order to clarify some, as yet, unanswered questions and also to improve our knowledge of this these unique objects. The same interdisciplinary method could be applied to the study of several kinds of objects held in other Museums, to collect comprehensive information and to expand the current data we have on them.

The goddess Bastet was worshipped in Egypt from the Early Dynastic Period and the Old Kingdom. She was depicted on reliefs of the royal mortuary complexes as the protector of the Lower Egyptian celestial vault and, like her counterpart Hathor, she played the role of royal nurse as well as being the protector of king and kingship. At the same time, she was the aggressive lioness, protecting her children from enemies. Therefore, the protective nature of the goddess was associated with a more combative side, which became typical of the kings, especially during the Middle and New Kingdom. But it was during the Ist millennium BC that her cult spread across the Nile valley.
The main temples dedicated to her were built in Saqqara and Tell Basta. However, many temple complexes that were sacred to her cult were located in other towns, often with enclosures where sacred animals were reared and necropolises where her hypostases were buried. The aim of this speech is to analyse these complexes through textual and archaeological sources, which shown their presence.

The goddess Bastet was worshipped in Egypt since the 2nd Dynasty as a protector of king and kingship. During the Old Kingdom, she was called nbt anx, an epithet that describe her role as a mother and nurse. She guaranteed some forms of (re)birth: genesis, rise to the throne, resurrection in the Afterlife. The goddess continued to play this role until the Roman Period, but this nature was shown in different ways.
In the Early Dynastic Period, she was represented on some stone vessels as a lion-headed goddess protecting the royal serekh. In the Old Kingdom his role as royal mother become explicit: in the decoration of the mortuary temples, she appears giving life/suckling the king. This nature of the goddess had as counterpart a more combative aspect. Especially during the Middle and New Kingdom, she was shown as a raged lioness protecting her children (Egyptian people). As a matter of fact, in the Greek-Roman Period versions of Myth of the Distant Goddess she was the bloodthirsty lioness that comes back to Egypt and cools herself down in a sacred lake, becoming the docile and fertile cat. The goddess brought with her the inundation, symbol of nature regeneration and life.
From the Ist millennium BC, Bastet was worshipped in two ways corresponding with two iconographies both linked with her role of mother. The lion-headed Bastet generally appears in official context, perhaps because the image of the lion has always suggested the idea of power, order, and stability: all qualities associated with the concept of kingship. The cat-headed Bastet or cat ex-votes were an expression of popular piety that identified in cat a prolific animal closer to the popular idea of Bastet as a protector of families, children and women.
This speech aims to clarify the birth and evolution of the role of Bastet as a mother and the transmission of this aspect through different iconographic means both in official and popular contexts.

All’inizio del 1900, A. Charron a L. Ginsburg dedicarono due articoli allo studio delle 16 necropoli di gatto allora conosciute. Nei primi anni 2000, S. Ikram identificò altre 9 necropoli di gatto. Tuttavia, le informazioni fornite si riducevano a elenchi corredati da brevi didascalie alle quali non è associata alcuna indicazione bibliografica.
L’analisi delle 25 necropoli “note” è iniziato con lo studio incrociato delle fonti archeologiche ed epigrafiche, che ha permesso di individuare altre sei necropoli di gatti, non incluse nei due studi pregressi sull’argomento.
Già alla fine del secolo scorso, Malek aveva individuato, a livello strutturale, diversi generi di necropoli di gatti sulla base delle tecniche edilizie, ma l’esame dei dati relativi ai contesti archeologici ha permesso di chiarire la natura di queste sepolture di felini, in base alla quale è stata operata una classificazione tipologica.
Nonostante non si possa negare la natura funeraria di tali depositi, essi avevano un chiaro valore votivo, e non erano solo luoghi dove le offerte votive venivano custodite per l’eternità, ma delle vere e proprie aree di culto e pellegrinaggio.

For the ancient Egyptian, what did it mean to worship a bird? In the later periods of Egyptian history there is an exponential increase in the written and archaeological evidence for the veneration of sacred animals. Few of these cults rivaled the size and importance of those organized for the ibis of Thoth and the falcon of Horus. Massive investments of resources were necessary to administer the capturing, rearing, mummifying, and burying of these birds in addition to performing the associated ritual services. How was the operation administered and funded? In contrast to popular explanations relying on one-dimensional reconstructions of the past, a close examination of the evidence reveals a complex network of interrelationships between the state, priestly labor unions, and the public. This lecture will explore how these groups interacted in order to make the falcon and ibis cults such a stunning success.

This paper aims to give an explanation for the anomalous fact that a living man can speak with his Ba within the Egyptian literary text, Dialogue between a Man and His Ba. This research notes that rare conversations between humans and other entities occur in Egyptian literature when
a warning or an admonition is given to the main character. It is argued that in this case only the Ba can restrain his suicidal owner from death.

The chief purpose of this paper is to discuss the possibility to recognize an Egyptian terminology or categorization about the so called "sacred animals", paying particular attention to the two main classes the texts allow us to identify and trying to ascertain the specific devices and the lexical choices by means of which such a distinction was communicated. In this perspective, the reference to written evidence will stand out as an approach as necessary as fruitful and rich of hints, even more taking into debt account the relative abundance the documentation shows both in terms of quantity and text types (stelae, ostraca and papyri); furthermore, these primary sources can be added to the secondary ones consisting of pieces of classical authors which, if treated with due caution, will give us precious information to complement and explicate the often laconic indications of the Egyptian texts.

En 2014 les professeurs, les chercheurs et les doctorants de l’Université des Etudes de Naples “L’Orientale” ont travaillé ensemble pour mettre en place le Musée de la Società Africana d’Italia, qui garde le patrimoine de la Société homonyme (SAI). Parmi la considérable  quantité de matériaux conservés, se trouvent cinq momies de chats égyptiennes.
Les nombreuses questions relatives à l'histoire de ces pièces ont reçu des éléments de réponse  grâce à l'étude d’archive. Les recherches diagnostiques (radiographies et scanner) ont révélé diverses informations sur les causes du décès, l'âge et la race des sujets. En outre, l'étude iconographique, l'examen des techniques de production et la comparaison avec des pièces similaires ont permis de fournir une datation pour chacun des cinq spécimens.
Une première étude sur la question a été déjà exposée au cours du XIème Congrès International des Égyptologues à Florence (2015). Il sera question lors de cette présentation les résultats obtenus au moyen de l’étude des archives, des analyses chimiques (datation par le radiocarbone et analyse des pigments) et de l’examen des tissus. Cinzia Oliva expliquera le travaille de restauration réalisé sur les momies. En outre, on présentera un projet d'exposition particulière, intégré d'outils digitaux, tels que le relief photogrammétrique 3D, qui permettra de faire connaître et apprécier les cinq momies de chat au public.

Traditionally, animal worship is not associated with the reconstructed religious panorama of Old Kingdom Egypt; on the other hand, the decorative cycle from the Room of Seasons in the solar temple of Niuserra at Abu Ghurob provides – with its impressive set of royal reliefs – a rare insight into the contemporary domain of official ideology and cult, one that is visually articulated and thematically centred on what Jan Assmann (The Search for God, 56) has aptly described as its “fundamental semantic framework: the sun god”.
The present paper will argue that these two apparently unrelated contexts of religious action (animal worship and OK solar cult) can actually be connected, focusing discussion on a peculiar scene – the so called Pelikanszene – whose curious representation and enigmatic inscription have aroused interest and stimulated debate. The careful examination of such a unique relief will allow three major points to be highlighted: (1) through contextual arguments and a specific heuristic pattern, a cultural-religious setting for the ritual episode displayed will be suggested; (2) the latter will serve as an exemplary case study for reassessing the methodological premises, conceptual schemes, and narrative strategies related with the interpretation of the whole “animal worship” issue; (3) all this will led to the conclusion that animal cult(s) must be reconceptualised as an articulated field of religious practice with a wider chronological range of expressions than usually admitted.
Ultimately, the case discussed has to be framed within a broad project, actually supported by the National Academy of Lincei, that represents an attempt of renewal in this field of studies, and aims to analyse, reconstruct and model the Egyptian animal worship as a dynamic historical process by charting significant patterns in the distribution of the monumental (visual, textual, archaeological) sources.