Bronze Egyptian cat

The Gayer Anderson cat is a votive figure dedicated by a wealthy worshipper of the Egyptian goddess Bastet during the Saite Period, about 600 BC. The bronze original is hollow and was made in the same way as our replica. It is thought to represent a sacred temple cat. On top of its head is an amuletic scarab symbolising the close connection between the cat and the sun-god. It wears gold leech-shaped earrings, a nose ring, and a silver pectoral udjat-eye, beneath which is an ornament in the shape of a winged scarab and silver disc. Around the cat's shoulders lies a three-stranded collar with pendants. In Ancient Egypt it was believed that most deities were able to take the form of a sacred animal in order to appear on earth. Not all members of a species were considered sacred; only those lucky enough to be chosen to live in a temple as the god's representative were revered. The only animal which the Egyptians seem to have held in total respect, whether it was a pet or kept in a tem