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Source Description
Although the cat is considered the most Egyptian of animals, as an object of worship the cat does not appear until late in Egyptian history. This unusually large statue of a cat was made to hold the mummified remains of a sacred cat. The coffin is, of course, hollow, with an open bottom. As usual, the animal’s tail is curled around its right side.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
98363
label
Cat Coffin
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
98363
contentType
object
title
Cat Coffin
description
Although the cat is considered the most Egyptian of animals, as an object of worship the cat does not appear until late in Egyptian history. This unusually large statue of a cat was made to hold the mummified remains of a sacred cat. The coffin is, of course, hollow, with an open bottom. As usual, the animal’s tail is curled around its right side.
date
305–30 BCE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60741470
genreSpecific
Funerary Equipment
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 51 x 14.1 x 24 cm (20 1/16 x 5 9/16 x 9 7/16 in.)
cul
Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BCE)
accession
1917.998
Source extras
tec
bronze, hollow cast
tombstone
Cat Coffin, 305–30 BCE. Egypt, Greco-Roman period (332 BCE–395 CE), Ptolemaic dynasty (305–30 BCE). Bronze, hollow cast; overall: 51 x 14.1 x 24 cm (20 1/16 x 5 9/16 x 9 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust, 1917.998
collection
Egypt - Greco-Roman
formerAccessionNumbers
1584.17
didYouKnow
A necklace appears to have been incised or scratched into the finished bronze; faint traces are visible on the chest.
citations
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 7
citation
Kathman, Barbara A. <em>A Cleveland Bestiary</em>. Cleveland, OH; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1981.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 37; Mentioned: p. 33, p. 62
citation
Berman, Lawrence M., and Kenneth J. Bohač.<em> Catalogue of Egyptian Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1999
page_number
Reproduced and Mentioned: p. 438
creditline
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
updatedAt
2026-05-29 05:18:37.616000
sourceId
98363
dept
Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art
coll
Egypt - Greco-Roman
med
bronze, hollow cast
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
db3f3523ad868544