It is an ancient Egyptian cat mummy with 3 tails and 5 hind legs.
Mummified cat at the French Museum of Fine Arts. (Photo: Sun).
Experts at the French Institute for Archaeological Research (INRAP) scanned the 2,500-year-old Egyptian cat mummy and reconstructed it in 3D. They took the mummy to the veterinary clinic to take pictures and were surprised to discover that it was actually a composite product of the parts of many different cats.
The cat mummy has 5 hind legs and 3 incomplete tails. In particular, the animal has no ribs or backbone and the cat mummy’s head is actually a woven ball.
From here, the researchers determined that the mummy was made up of body parts of different cats instead of a single cat as usual.
“There are millions of animal mummies. Some are empty, others contain only a bone, sometimes the cat is still intact. Some researchers think we have encountered a trick of the ancient priests. On the contrary, we are sure there are countless ways to embalm animals. We will know more after taking pictures of the body,” said researcher Theophane Nicolas.
Cat mummies are used as religious items.
Animal mummification is not only a way to preserve pets, but also to be used as religious items. Researchers believe that the ancient Egyptians offered animal mummies as sacrifices to gods or kept them in tombs to accompany them to the next life. The Egyptians loved cats and even worshiped a cat-headed goddess named Mafdet during the First Dynasty in 3400 – 3000 BC. This deity plays an important role in the spiritual life of the people. Because, this god is considered the protector of the family, fertility and healing.
As a result, many temples to the goddess Bastet were built in Egypt. People not only consider cats a sacred animal, symbolizing Bastet, but also embalm this animal when they die to show respect.