POSTED AT 11:20 PM October 26, 2009

Animal mummies from the Cairo museum

Marilyn sez, "Why did the ancient Egyptians go to such trouble to mummify animals? A 17-foot, knobby-backed crocodile, buried with baby croc mummies in its mouth, for example, or tiny scarab beetles and the dung balls they ate. An antelope, a kitten, a baboon. Some were pets, some were sacred animals, and some were just"gourmet jerky for the hereafter." But which were which? Here's a story about zooarchaeology: the study of ancient animal remains. I like the last photo in this gallery, showing a mummified baboon from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. An x-ray revealed missing canines, which may indicate the animal was a pet, with teeth removed to 'prevent nipping royal fingers'".

Animal Mummies (Thanks, Marilyn!)

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LeFunk | #1 | 05:24 on Tue, Oct.27 | Reply

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Well, what do you spank in the afterlife?

Anonymous | #2 | 10:01 on Tue, Oct.27 | Reply

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ISTR reading that many animal mummies were sold to be used as temple sacrifices. Inside the elaborate mummy wrappings the size of an adult cat or ibex (depending on the god being propriated) would be a tiny kitten or chick.

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