Det forna Egypten är en spännande plats att besöka i fantasin. Vi gör det här ur kattens synvinkel, och får träffa en kultur som både skiljer sig markant från vår och kan ge igenkännande.

Man vet inte riktigt säker när katten bosatte sig hos människan
 men man tror att det var för minst 5000 år redan i det nuvarande Egypten,
 men det kan också vara så att katten kan ha tämjts ungefär samtidigt
överallt där det fanns vildkatter i Europa och Asien .
Katterna blev så ovärderliga för egyptierna
 att det länge var förbjudet att föra ut dem ur landet.
Egyptierna såg katterna som heliga. Det uppstod en slags kattdyrkan i Egypten och man tillbad guden Bastet
som var avbildad som en människa med katthuvud.
 Hon sattes i samband med lycka och värme .

The Egyptians were respectful towards the animals that shared their world and associated many of them with deities or positive human characteristics. However, no animal was held in such esteem as the cat. Cats were closely connected to a number of gods and goddesses, and there is evidence that they were considered to be demi-gods in their own right. As an inscription in the Valley of the Kings states;

"You are the Great Cat, the avenger of the gods, and the judge of words, and the president of the sovereign chiefs and the governor of the holy Circle; you are indeed the Great Cat."

As a primarily agrarian society, the Ancient Egyptians had a distinct problem with mice, rats and snakes all of whom threatened the grain stores. It is thought that the Ancient Egyptians learned that wild cats preyed on these scavengers and so began to leave out food (such as fish heads) to tempt the cats to visit them regularly. This suited the cats perfectly as being close to human settlements not only provided them with a ready supply of food (the vermin and the food left by humans) but also helped them to avoid larger predators. As this symbiotic relationship developed cats were welcomed indoors and eventually consented to move in with their human friends and rear their kittens in the safety of the home.

Their diet changed somewhat as they were provided with food by grateful humans, and breeding programs heightened certain characteristics in the formerly wild animals. The Egyptians even hunted with their cats, a seemingly amazing feat of co-operation with an animal renowned for its stubborn individualism. Most importantly, they loved and respected their cats for being playful and affectionate companions but also highly intelligent skilful predators.

Cats were also important in the interpretation of dreams. Apparently seeing a cat in your dream confirmed that you would have a good harvest.

The Egyptians did not distinguish between a wild cat and a domesticated cat; all cats were known as "miu" (or "miut") often translated as "he or she who mews". The origin of this name is not clear but it seems likely that it is an onomatopoetic reference to the sound a cat makes (mew). However, some commentators have suggested that it also related to the word miw (to see). It seems that it was rare for a cat to be given its own specific name (rather than being called "miu" or "miut"). However, there are exceptions such as the cat named "Nedjem" ("sweetie") and another named "Tai Miuwette" ("the little mewer") who was the companion of crown prince Thutmose (eldest son of Amenhotep lll and brother of Akhenaten ). Little girls were often named "Miut" (literally meaning "female cat") displaying the Egyptians fondness for both cats and children.

There were two main breeds of cat native to Ancient Egypt. The jungle cat (Felis chaus) and the African wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica). The latter had a calmer temperament and so was more commonly domesticated than its wilder relative. The two species eventually merged creating a new breed which was closely related to the modern Egyptian Mau. As the cat was domesticated, further changes in temperament and appearance became apparent. Cats became more colourful (as the need to be almost permanently camouflaged lessened), their bodies became smaller and less muscled (due to changes in diet and activity), their brains became smaller (as a result of the reduction in necessary survival instincts) and they developed an increased tolerance for humans.

It seems that the cat is in fact indigenous to Egypt. There is evidence that the majority of the world´s cats can trace their ancestry to an Egyptian cat. It is sometimes suggested that cats were introduced into Egypt from Persia around 2000 B.C.E or from Nubia during the New Kingdom but this is unlikely due to significant evidence that cats lived in Egypt before these dates. In fact, archaeologists found a man interred with his cat in a burial mound in Mostagedda near Asyut dated to around 6,000 years ago. The cat may not have been domesticated, but was clearly important to the deceased. It is generally suggested that cats were domesticated in Egypt around 2000 B.C.E. Dogs had already been domesticated for over a thousand years by this time.

From the New Kingdom cats often appear in tomb paintings along with their human families. People were often depicted on hunting trips with their cats (who would retrieve birds and fish for their human companion). However, one of the most common (and in my view the sweetest) representations depicts the cat sitting under or beside the chair of the mistress of the house offering her protection and friendship. Cats had always been popular and were associated with some very powerful goddesses.

However, when the town of Bubastis (Per-Bast) was established as the royal residence by Shoshenq I ( Dynasty Twenty-two ) the goddess Bast was promoted to a position of great power, as were the cats with whom she was so closely associated.

Mer om Bastet på egen sida

Many animals were seen as the representatives of gods (for example, crocodiles, hawks and cows) but the animals themselves were not considered to be divine. However, there is some evidence that every cat was considered to be a demi-god (although some Egyptologists do not agree). According to one theory, the cat as a semi-divine being could not be owned by a mere human. Only the pharaoh had a high enough status to own a cat. Thus all cats were under the guardianship of the pharaoh and harming a cat was treason.

As a result, there were extremely heavy penalties for harming cats throughout Egyptian history. At the height of Bast´s popularity killing a cat, even accidentally, was punishable by death. Diodorus Siculus wrote "Whoever kills a cat in Egypt is condemned to death, whether he committed this crime deliberately or not. The people gather and kill him. An unfortunate Roman, who accidentally killed a cat, could not be saved, either by King Ptolemy of Egypt or by the fear which Rome inspired." However, some feline mummies recovered from Bubastis display severe trauma to the head or neck, indicating that they had been intentionally killed. This of course contrasts with the law regarding the killing of cats. However, it is thought that this action was considered acceptable in Bubastis to prevent an explosion of the feline population and that all the cats were offered to Bast (and would therefore live eternally in kitty-heaven). Anyone else deliberately harming a cat was in deep trouble.

It was apparently illegal to export cats to neighbouring countries. This led to a thriving trade in smuggled cats! Court records confirm that armies were occasionally dispatched to rescue the kidnapped felines and bring them home to Egypt.

Herodotus claimed that on discovery of a house fire, the men from the house would line up outside the building to protect the cats from danger. He suggested that the cats would "leap into the fire" unless protected by the men, which seems rather unlikely unless their kittens were still inside the home. This story may well be made up or exaggerated, but again highlights the high status of the cat in Egyptian society.

Herodotus also recorded that the Persians used the Egyptian´s love of cats against them. Apparently, the Persians captured a large number of cats and let them loose on the battlefield outside Pelusium. When the Egyptians saw the terrified cats running around the battlefield, they surrendered rather than risk harm to their beloved friends.

CATS LED PRIVILEGED LIVES

Diodorus briefly reiterates the much earlier comments of Herodotus about the devotion and great veneration afforded cats not only during their lifetimes, but even after death. Society was so devout, that if someone intentionally or unintentionally killed a cat, he was put to death. Even in cases of critical national famine, sacred animals such as the cat apparently went unscathed. In addition to being sacred, Diodorus notes their useful characteristics, such as confronting asps positioned to bite and warding off other snakes. Cats were also of service to fowlers in their search for birds in the Nile marshes, as attested by a wall painting in the New Kingdom tomb of Nebamun at Thebes. Diodorus explains that a portion of land for sacred cats was consecrated, which provided for their upkeep and made them self-supporting.

As felines of privilege within the temple of Bubastis precincts, they lived as the earthly embodiment of the temple goddess Bastet. Mummies were placed in the cult center and dedicated to Bastet in order to increase her favor. Evidence also suggests that numerous domesticated cats were bred and some deliberately killed in order to be mummified. This was done to satisfy the great demand for them by zealous pilgrims, who bought and dedicated them at cult centers. Many were needed to go around. Herodotus relates the excitement generated among the throngs of pilgrims after they arrived at Bubastis: "...they make a festival and great sacrifices, and more wine is drunk at this feast than in the whole year beside." (Note 7) The number attending the festival may have reached the extraordinary level of some 700,000 people. It may be that cat mummies numbered in the millions, were it possible to tabulate those buried in sites all over Egypt. As eternal life was all to the ancient Egyptians, so too was it for their sacred animals. The life of a cat in the hereafter, therefore, was a place of sweet greenery, mice, and tasty morsels. There, "meows" would be heard in abundance.