Small Bull Mummy/1

From card: "Late Ptolemaic to Early Roman Period (200 B.C. - 200 A.D.)" See accession history for detailed info. on collection/donation of this artifact and the others in this collection.

From NMNH Exhibit Hall "Eternal Life in Ancient Egypt" label for this artifact, 2011: Bull mummy, 300 B.C.-A.D. 400. Although at least nine layers of wrappings protect this bull, the x-ray below reveals only a jumble of bones inside. Some scholars suggest that priests or the king ate the meat to partake of the god's powers. Embalmers mummified the head, however, and held a ritual to allow the bull to see, eat, and hear forever. Divine Bull. This bull lived like a god in a special stable within the temple walls. Priests massaged his body, decorated his horns with ornaments of silver, and even sang to him. Egyptians saw him as a living manifestation of a god, and worshippers filled the temple daily to honor him. When the bull died, Egyptians believed he went on to eternal life, and a young bull with the same distinctive markings took his place. Many temples honored other sacred animals - for example, crocodiles that embodied the god Sobek in the temple at Kom Ombo, and cats of Bastet at Bubastis. When a divine bull died, the entire region fell into mourning. Priests held an elaborate funeral and buried him in an underground niche.

1 Apr 2025

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