Basket with lid; reproduction Egyptian metal animal figures glued on its lid. Two of the images are of cats, and a third is of a scarab. The larger cat figure and the scarab figure include carved Egyptian hieroglyphics.

SCARAB: In ancient Egyptian religion the scarab was a symbol of immortality, resurrection, transformation, and protection much used in funerary art. The life of the scarab beetle revolved around the dung balls that the beetles consumed, laid their eggs in, and fed their young represented a cycle of rebirth.

CAT: The cat was associated with the goddess Bastet, daughter of the sun god Ra, and so was particularly important. ‘Bastet could be represented either as a cat, or a cat-headed woman,’ continues the specialist. Initially worshipped as the protector goddess of Lower Egypt, she is depicted as a fierce lion in early artistic representations — the name Bastet translated, fittingly, as ‘devourer’. Later, Bastet became associated with sunrise, music, and dance, as well as family, fertility, and birth. Cat figures of this type were often adorned with gold earrings.

‘Ancient Egyptians would make offerings to their gods in the form of animal sacrifices, which they believed would grant good wishes and protection,’ continues Delaloye. ‘This beautiful decoration would have been placed on top of a mummified cat, which would have been expertly wrapped, and buried in an animal cemetery.’

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