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Cat
(Ancient Egypt and Nubia )
Representations of cats were popular in ancient Egypt, particularly in Bubastis, the cult center of the love- and fertility-goddess Bastet, who is represented either as a cat or as a woman with a cat's head. During the Late and Greco-Roman periods (6th-1st century BC), people donated cat figures (associated with fertility, love, and protection) to temples throughout Egypt. This cat is adorned with golden earrings, a beaded collar, and a necklace with a "wedjat"-eye pendant, which symbolizes the protection of the sun god.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
"Sheik of the Pyramids", [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1930 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2008-2013 | Mummified. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 9/17/1959 | Treatment | cleaned |
| 1/14/1965 | Treatment | cleaned |
| 9/27/1965 | Treatment | cleaned |
| 9/1/1979 | Treatment | cleaned |
| 10/24/2008 | Treatment | loss compensation; cleaned; other |
Geographies
Egypt (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 7 x W: 2 1/2 x D: 4 5/8 in. (17.78 x 6.35 x 11.75 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1930
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.2130