Excavating 2,500-year-old Egyptian tombs, suddenly discovered inside contains dozens of cat mummies

Egyptian authorities have just announced a rare discovery of dozens of animal mummies in a tomb dating back about 2600 years, including mummies of cats, lions, cobras, crocodiles, and bugs. giant wings 4 times larger than normal. Of these, cat corpses account for the majority, with about 30 cats of all kinds buried with 75 cat statues made of wood and copper.

Meanwhile, the other 3 mummies belong to the cat family, including 2 lions and 1 desert leopard. Through the mummification method, cats can be found in the ancient Egyptians in a more respectful position than other species.

Picture 1 of Excavating 2,500-year-old Egyptian tombs, suddenly discovered inside contains dozens of cat mummies
Mummies of cats were found in the tomb.

In ancient Egypt, the priests used to mummify animals for two purposes. First, they revere the servants of the gods and mummify them as gifts to the gods. In addition, when a person died, the animals were mummified and buried in the tomb in the belief that they will be on the side to protect the deceased.

For these reasons, cats are often chosen as spiritual messengers sent to the afterlife. In ancient Egypt, Mafdet was a cat-head god widely worshiped during the first dynasty (2920 to 2770 BC). Gods are people who protect people against snakes, scorpions and other evil things. Cats are regarded as servants of the Mafdet so they were highly respected in ancient Egypt.

The discovery of catacombs full of cat mummies is a rare occurrence, because not every class in Egyptian society has the right to mummify these revered animals. Unlike many parts of the world, cats are highly regarded in Egypt and humans do not arbitrarily kill them to conduct mummification. Egyptian priests usually mummified dead cats due to illness or aging.

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Mafdet god in Egyptian mythology.

Back in the present, Egyptian officials are hoping to collect more from the animal mummies. Surveys from 2014 to the present show that mummified cat mummies are special treasures that attract the attention of international tourists, besides large monuments such as Giza or Valley of the Kings.

These new mummies will undoubtedly be a strategic card to attract visitors to the grand opening of the Great Egyptian Museum in 2020.