In the world, it is estimated that no civilization is more loving animals than ancient Egypt.
In the ancient Egyptian scriptures, there are 2 words per 4 to 5 words related to animals; in the belief of the ancient Egyptians, one of the questions that must be answered after death is, “Have you abused your life? "Animals" - this is an important criterion for whether you can attain eternal life; the gods of Egyptian mythology have basically a part of the beast's body.
Anubis, the most famous shrine in Egyptian mythology.
For them, animals have a variety of material and spiritual meanings.
Therefore, the ancient Egyptians can only express their love in one way: for the mummy. What you may not know is what mummies the ancient Egyptians had done...
The funeral of an Egyptian cat painted by British painter John Reinhard Weguelin in 1886.
Making mummies cats and Egyptians loving cats is not new for many people who know a little about Egypt.
In ancient times where living conditions were poor, cats helped people drive out rats and insects and protect valuable food. Moreover, the ancient Egyptians believed that cats could fight against the big villains of Egyptian mythology—the snakes. In some murals, there was a scene in which a cat took a knife and chopped the snake into several sections of fighting power.... ..
Therefore, even Pharaoh will be buried together with the cat mummy and look forward to resurrection.
However, there is also a very cruel aspect behind this: Some researchers believe that ancient Egyptians will house cats and devote themselves to sacrificing. Many kittens were cut off directly in their childhood and used as mummies to “dedicate God.
It is worth mentioning that the Europeans once transported 10,000 mummified cats to Europe and used them as fertilizer for crops after grinding...
In addition to cats, there is also a creature also sought after by the ancient Egyptians, that is, the ibis.
Many people believe that the ibis can also fight serpents and hunt flies that cause plagues and diseases to humans. Therefore, the statues and mummies made by the ibis are also very sacred in Egypt.
On the Nile, besides cats and ibises, almost all kinds of animals that have been discovered have been made into mummies. Among them, sheep and crocodile have the highest number of mummies. However, the reason why the two animals were mummified is exactly the opposite:
As one of the sources of food and clothing for the ancient Egyptians, lamb, goat milk and wool have improved the quality of life for the ancient Egyptians. When the sheep dies, it will not only be made into a mummy, it will even be adorned with a gold mask, which is more luxurious than the funeral of ordinary civilians.
The crocodile is at the other extreme. The crocodile who lived on the banks of the ancient Nile is a big threat to the lives of ordinary people. In the ancient Egyptian literature, stories of people being eaten by crocodiles are indispensable.
However, it is also because of the powerful power of the crocodile that people worship the creature while fearing it. The mummies made of crocodile are not only used to pray that the crocodile will not come ashore to hurt humans, but also to intimidate the enemy on the battlefield.
If you can tell... this is a crocodile mummy...
This is probably true... Love it, make it a mummy; hate it and make it a mummy...
In addition to these large animals, the Egyptians also produced mummies of fish, birds, and even eggs, some of which were used to pray for fishing and other purposes of life and production.
According to researchers' estimates, during the history of thousands of years, the ancient Egyptians planted more than 70 million mummies with humans and animals to wait for the coming of life. Maybe this kind of sacrifice is cruel, but for the ancient Egyptians, it was probably a bright road to eternal life.