Egyptians had a deep respect for nature and in many ways worshipped it. Animals and plants found their way into hieroglyphs, sacred architecture and paintings. Modern biologists can identify the species of many plants and animals depicted on hieroglyphics, while humans were painted unrealistically, showing us plants and animals were well studied and of great importance in ancient Egypt. This sculpture of a cat is adorned with gold jewelry and an intricate necklace. The cat also looks very poised and dignified, showing how cats were viewed during this time period. Egyptians had many gods that had the head of an animal and some that were a complete animal. Many plants and natural phenomenas were an integral part of Egyptian life in addition to animal worship and respect. The annual flooding of the Nile, the stars, the moon, and the sun were all studied and reverenced. During this time, cats were thought important enough to be mummified, a burial process reserved for influential and wealthy Egyptians. In 1888 an Egyptian farmer uncovered a large tomb containing over eighty thousand cat and kitten mummies. There have only been around three thousand human mummies discovered, leading us to believe that cats and other animals and things of nature were very important to ancient Egyptians.
No comments:
Post a Comment