Museum Explorer
Birds and beasts in
Ancient Egypt
Group of cattle
From: el-Amra, Egypt
Date: around 3500 BC
This model is of four cattle standing in a row. Black and white were common colours for cattle in ancient Egypt.
Cows were the most widely kept animal in Egypt. They were kept mainly for milk and to pull loads or ploughs (as in the picture underneath). Meat was an unusual treat because cattle were too valuable and useful to kill, although sometimes they were sacrificed to the gods.
Large herds of cattle were kept by the king, noblemen and temples. Hot branding irons were used to mark them with their owner's sign.
