LATE PERIOD TO PTOLEMAIC PERIOD, 664-30 B.C.

The cat was sacred to Bastet, goddess of motherhood and the home. Her cult centers, which rose to prominence during the 22nd Dynasty, were called Bubasteion, and were numerous in Egypt. The main one was in the Nile delta region, in the modern city of Tell Basta, which was called Per-Bastet in antiquity. Mummified cats, as well as statues made of wood or bronze, like the present example, were dedicated to her and buried at her temples, functioning as votives for the deity. This cat wears a collar with a quadruple wadjet-eye amulet. A scarab beetle, the symbol of regeneration, is incised atop its head.