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Animal Mummies
Mummy of a cat
The Egyptians did not worship animals, but they did believe that
many of their gods and goddesses each had their own special animal.
All cats were considered to belong to the goddess Bastet. People
thought that if they left Bastet a gift of a mummified cat in her
temple, then she would be pleased, and help them with their
problems. Many thousands of cats were killed to make into animal
mummies. X-rays often show their necks have been broken.
The careful wrapping of this cat mummy hides the jumble of bones
inside. Its head has been covered with a painted clay mask. You
can't see the cat's legs as they have been folded across its body
which has then been wrapped up.