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Source Description

Representations of cats are well-known in Ancient Egypt from the 2nd millennium BCE. The onomatopoetic Egyptian name was "miu" (mjw) for the male, and "mit" (mjjt) for the female cat. Egypt's economic base was agriculture and therefore rodent- and snake-hunting felines were very much appreciated. In terms of religious beliefs the male cat was connected to the sun-god, and the female cat to Bastet. Particularly in the Late and Greco-Roman Periods representations of the goddess as well as cats and cats with kittens became very popular to symbolize fertility and renewal. This amulet displays a seated female cat with a kitten in front of her. This kitten is facing the right and has the same posture as its mother. The amulet has a rectangular base and a loop on the back of the cat.

Scholar Source Context

Document identity
localId
6840
label
Cat with Kittens
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
5
Source metadata
id
6840
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Cat with Kittens
description
Representations of cats are well-known in Ancient Egypt from the 2nd millennium BCE. The onomatopoetic Egyptian name was "miu" (mjw) for the male, and "mit" (mjjt) for the female cat. Egypt's economic base was agriculture and therefore rodent- and snake-hunting felines were very much appreciated. In terms of religious beliefs the male cat was connected to the sun-god, and the female cat to Bastet. Particularly in the Late and Greco-Roman Periods representations of the goddess as well as cats and cats with kittens became very popular to symbolize fertility and renewal. This amulet displays a seated female cat with a kitten in front of her. This kitten is facing the right and has the same posture as its mother. The amulet has a rectangular base and a loop on the back of the cat.
provenance
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
4th century BCE (Late Period-early Ptolemaic)
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Ceramics
pendants
amulets
figurines
imageCount
5
pageCount
5
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
4.6
height
0.9
depth
2.6
dimensionsRaw
H: 1 13/16 x W: 5/16 x D: 1 in. (4.61 x 0.87 x 2.6 cm)
Source extras
cul
Egyptian
dynasty
30th-early Ptolemaic Dynasty
med
Egyptian faience with blue-green glaze
creator_ids
6182
collection_ids
EGY
exhibition_ids
2172
Page inventory
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1
type
photo
mediaId
57c85bba71126cdc
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no
seq
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type
photo
mediaId
af6b2c65b334c2c1
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
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type
photo
mediaId
59292c4c2a007d5b
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
69b8c0190f7a1dcc
hasOcr
no
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no
seq
5
type
photo
mediaId
5013ab615fc835ea
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no