Abstract:
Ancient Egyptian animal mummies can be found in almost every Egyptological museum collection. These mummified bodies of animals—from cats and falcons to scarabs and fish—played a role in animal cults and religion, but could also represent a favourite pet or serve as food for the deceased. Especially in Graeco-Roman Egypt, large numbers of animal mummies were deposited as votive offerings related to animal cults, thus playing a significant role in local economies. Studying their remains helps us understand the relation of the ancient Egyptians with their natural environment.
From 2021 to 2024 the Allard Pierson organised a multidisciplinary research project around the thirteen animal mummies in the collection. Questions not only focused on identifying the animal species and recording post-depositional traces related to provenance histories, but also on recording information related to the mummification process. The rarely occurring mummified genus of Bagrus might shed light on the role of this fish in Egyptian animal cults, while the analysis of the crocodile skeleton brings the identification of mummified crocodile species a step further. The mysterious falcon mummy without an animal inside and the mummy containing half the body of a young cat contribute to the ongoing discussion on how the ancient Egyptians considered the animal’s relation with the purpose of the cult. Additionally the need for conservation treatment and the wish to interact with museum visitors enabled contributions in both these increasingly important fields.
Contents
Preface
Els van der Plas
Introduction
Ben van den Bercken
Animal Mummies at the Allard Pierson
Ben van den Bercken
The Animal Mummy Project: From Research to Outreach
Ben van den Bercken
Fish Mummies
Ben van den Bercken and Martien van Oijen
Crocodile Mummy
Marinus Hoogmoed and Ben van den Bercken
Cat Mummies
Ben van den Bercken and Susanne Boroffka
Shrew Mummy and Shrew Coffins
Ben van den Bercken and Rainer Hutterer
Scarab Mummy
Frank-Thorsten Krell and Ben van den Bercken
Bird Mummies
Ben van den Bercken and Guido Keijl
Radiological research
Nick Lobé
Options for the Conservation and Restoration of the Allard Pierson Crocodile Mummy
Willemijn Bolderman and Ana Serrano
Creating the Animal Mummy 3D Viewer
Tijm Lanjouw, Jitte Waagen, Markus Stoffer
Ben van den Bercken
MA
Ben van den Bercken (MA) studied Egyptian Archaeology at Leiden University and Museum Studies at the University of Amsterdam. He worked at excavations in Alexandria and as an assistant-curator in the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden (RMO). Since 2021 he is curator for the Ancient Egypt and Sudan collection at the Allard Pierson – the collections of the University of Amsterdam.
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