This section of the website is designed to provide background information about Ancient Egypt, archaeology and the Animal Mummies. It will be updated frequently and is still largely under construction. A table of contents for this section appears below. To learn more about a particular subject, click on the section headings, or the menu bar to the right.
The animal mummies in the Cairo Museum are of four types:
Preserved by their owners so that they might be together after death. This section discusses the kinds of animals that were kept as household pets or hunting companions.
SACRED ANIMALS:
Living avatars of Egyptian gods in life and given an appropriately elaborate burial upon death. This section discusses what we know about these animals and gives a brief background of the Egyptian Gods associated with various animals.
VOTIVE OFFERINGS:
Mummies left as offerings for deities associated with particular animals. Or left as offerings left in or near tombs to honor the dead.
FOOD:
Meats preserved through mummification for use by the dead in the afterlife. This section may expand to discuss Egyptian methods for ensuring comfort in the afterlife.
FAKES:
X-Rays reveal that many animal mummies, especially VOTIVE mummies, are ancient fakes. This phenomenon is discussed.
MUMMIFICATION:
The process of mummification is discussed. The manner of death of various categories of Animal Mummy may be discussed.
REFERENCES
Sources of additional information and references for discussions in this section.
LINKS:
Links to related websites dealing with Ancient Egypt and archaeology.
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