ClassificationsAncient Egyptian Art

Dog Mummy

Place CreatedEgypt, Africa

CultureEgyptian

PeriodLate Period

Date722-332 BCE

MediumLinen, paint, animal remains

Credit LineGift of Joseph A. Lewis II and Sofi Lewis

Dimensions13 1/2 x 5 3/8 x 2 3/4 in. (34.3 x 13.7 x 7 cm)

Object number2011.003.001

Label TextIn ancient Egypt, mummification was used to preserve the bodies of animals, including on rare occasions, household pets, although most animal mummies were intended for ritual purposes. Dedicaton of an animal mummy was regarded as a pious act, with the animal acting an intermediary between the donor and the god. The Egyptians believed animals held the essence of a specific god or group of gods. When an individual presented the mummy as a votive offering, the divine essence within the animal was given back to its god.|

Dogs embodied the soul of the god Anubis who guarded the necropolis. Raised in large farms, dogs were mummied at death and sold to pilgrims. Animal mummies left in temples and sacred sites by pilgrims were buried in vast cemeteries. Archaeologists recently discovered a series of tunnels at Saqqara containing the remains of 8 million animals.

Exhibition HistoryMCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, June 3, 2013 - March 13, 2018
MCCM Permanent Collection Gallery, July 17, 2018 - Present

ProvenancePurchased by MCCM from Sue McGovern-Huffman [Sands of Time Antiquities], Washington DC.

Status

On view

Collections