Eight Million Dog Mummies Found at Saqqara

Say what?

EIGHT MILLION?  At least -- eight million prayers, over how many hundreds of years? 

From the Goddess' side to the ears of the gods, so the dog has traveled through time.

Eight million dog mummies found in SaqqaraEight million dog mummies were uncovered at the dog catacomb in Saqqara

Nevine El-Aref , Wednesday 2 Jan 2013

 

During routine excavations at the dog catacomb in Saqqara necropolis, an excavation team led by Salima Ikram, professor of Egyptology at The American University in Cairo (AUC), and an international team of researchers led by Paul Nicholson of Cardiff University have uncovered almost 8 million animal mummies at the burial site.

 

Studies on their bones revealed that those dogs are from different breeds but not accurately identified yet.

 

“We are recording the animal bones and the mummification techniques used to prepare the animals,” Ikram said.

Studies on the mummies, Ikram explains, revealed that some of them were old while the majority were buried hours after their birth. She said that the mummified animals were not limited to canines but there are cat and mongoose remains in the deposit.

“We are trying to understand how this fits religiously with the cult of Anubis, to whom the catacomb is dedicated,” she added.

 

Ikram also told National Geographic, which is financing the project, that “in some churches people light a candle, and their prayer is taken directly up to God in that smoke. In the same way, a mummified dog's spirit would carry a person's prayer to the afterlife”.

 

Saqqara dog catacomb was first discovered in 1897 when well-known French Egyptologist Jacques De Morgan published his Carte of Memphite necropolis, with his map showing that there are two dog catacombs in the area.

 

However, mystery has overshadowed such mapping as it was not clear who was the first to discover the catacombs nor who carried out the mapping, and whether they were really for dogs.

 

“The proximity of the catacombs to the nearby temple of Anubis, the so called jackal or dog-headed deity associated with cemeteries and embalming makes it likely that these catacombs are indeed for canines and their presence at Saqqara is to be explained by the concentration of other animal cuts at the site,” Nicholson wrote on his website.

“These other cults include the burials of, and temples for, bulls, cows, baboons, ibises, hawks and cats all of which were thought to act as intermediaries between humans and their gods.”

 

Despite the great quantity of animals buried in these catacombs and the immense size of the underground burial places, Egyptologists have focused on the temples and on inscriptional evidence rather than on the animals themselves and their places of burial.

 

The mysteries behind De Morgan’s mapping were unsolved until 2009 when this team started concrete excavations at the cemetery in an attempt to learn more about the archaeological and history of the site.

 

“Results at the first season showed that De Morgan map has substantial inaccuracies and a new survey is under way,” Nicholson said.

 

“The animal bones themselves have been sampled and preliminary results suggest that as well as actual dogs there may be other canids present. Furthermore the age profile of the animals is being examined so that patterns of mortality can be ascertained.”

Did a Mourning Dog Refuse to Leave Dead Master's Side?

The position of this dog is very much like a pooch laying down at the feet of his (or her) master, resting but watching.  I've seen photographs of dogs laying at gravesites in exactly this position.

From Past Horizons
11/2012

Cave used to bury the dead contained a mummified dog

A unique find in Mexico of a thousand year old naturally mummified dog, will be subjected to various tests, including X-rays and DNA.

A rare find

The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) recovered the animal along with 2,500 other artefacts found in Cueva de la Candelaria in 1953 after they had been stored by those who had first excavated the site 60 years previously. It is one of the few examples of mummified dogs in the world, with other similar examples found in Peru and Egypt. Few dog skeletons are found in funerary contexts during the pre-Hispanic period and this mummified example which would have stood about 22cm high is the only one that has been found in Mexico so far.

INAH archaeologist, Alejandro Bautista Valdespino commented that the mummified canine lies on its right side with head and neck bent down, with back left leg flexed and front legs extended. “This finding generates expectations about the potential for new insights into the archaeology of northern Mexico, because it reinforces the idea of placing dogs as companions in the funeral traditions of the nomads of the region. “

Protecting the past

During an initiative to investigate the state of collections, archaeologists found that the organic artefacts had not undergone adequate conservation measures, so they were recovered and placed under the authority of the INAH.

Archaeologist Yuri Leopoldo de la Rosa Gutierrez, of the Coahuila INAH Centre said that the Candelaria cave where the artefacts were discovered was used by groups of hunter-gatherers as a site to deposit their dead.

Over four thousand objects and about 200 human bones had been found inside the cave, dating to the Late Prehistoric period (800-1200 AD) and this would place the age of the mummified dog at around 1,000 years old, although C14 dating will be required to confirm this.

New knowledge of the Laguna region

The mummified dog is related to a type group called “harriers“.

Isaac Aquino Toledo, a DRPMZA researcher, recalled that the 3m deep rock shelter was first investigated in 1953 by INAH specialists; their discovery marked a turning point for the country’s archaeology since they gathered more than four thousand objects, almost all organic and in excellent condition, including textiles, basketry, wood and bone artefacts and the skeletal remains of about 200 individuals.

According to the archaeologists these items will enrich our knowledge about funeral customs that developed among the hunter- gatherers from 800 AD until the arrival of the Spanish in the north in the early seventeenth century.

Preliminarily examination suggests the mummification of the animal was due to natural causes, with the low humidity and constant dry climate prevailing in the cave.

It has even been suggested that the animal died from starvation, because, apparently, no visible injuries can be seen or clues to a cause of death.

Following the completion of conservation work and analysis of recovered objects, some of the artefacts will be displayed first in the Museo Regional de la Laguna.

Source: National Institute of Anthropology and History

Mummified Dogs Uncovered at Peruvian Pyramid Complex

This story reminds me of the old practice found in Europe and the ancient Middle East of burying dogs in the foundations of buildings.

From physorg.com

Mummies of 15th century dogs discovered in Peru
November 10, 2010

Peruvian archaeologists have discovered six mummified dogs, all dating from the 15th century and apparently presented as religious offerings at a major pre-Columbian site just south of Lima.

The dogs "have hair and complete teeth," said Jesus Holguin, an archaeologist at the museum in Pachacamac, located some 25 kilometers (15 miles) south of Lima.

Holguin told AFP Wednesday that experts were still trying to determine their breed.

The mummified remains of four children were also found at the site, archaeologists said.

The mummified dogs were found two weeks ago wrapped in cloth and buried in one of Pachacamac's adobe brick pyramids.

Archaeologists believe the animals were offerings related to a funeral, "although we do not know if this was related to an important personality of the Inca period," said archaeologist Isabel Cornejo.

The experts believe the dogs are neither Hairless Peruvian Dogs -- an ancient native breed -- nor sheepdogs found at gravesites of the Chiribaya culture, which flourished in southern Peru between the years 900 and 1350.

"Their strong teeth lead us to believe that they are domestic dogs that were used for hunting," added another expert, Enrique Angulo.

Researchers will x-ray the finds in an attempt to determine the breed of the animals and whether the dogs were slaughtered.

Pachacamac museum director Denise Pozzi-Escot said that the find will let researchers broaden their knowledge of ancient Peruvian canines.

The remains are well preserved due to the type of soil and the dry weather along the Peruvian coastline, where it rarely rains.

At its height, Pachacamac was the most important ceremonial center on Peru's central coast, where thousands of pilgrims flocked from afar bringing rich offerings. Human sacrifices took place at the site.

At least three different societies occupied Pachacamac for hundreds before the Incas took it over around 1400. The Incas in turn were defeated by Spanish conquistadors who arrived in 1532.

(c) 2010 AFP

Surprising Beauty and Dog Mummies, Too!

Surprise Egypt Tombs Yield Ornate Coffins, Dog Mummies Steven Stanek in Cairo, Egyptfor National Geographic News January 30, 2008 Four ancient tombs containing well-preserved mummies, ornate painted coffins, and mummified dogs have been unearthed in El Faiyum, an oasis about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Cairo (see map). (See photos of the tomb treasures.) One female mummy was found wearing a gilded mask, a rare treasure at the site known as the necropolis of Deir el-Banat. The burial complex is a frequent target for modern-day grave robbers and was thought to have been looted of its riches. "An important point is that these mummies are almost untouched," said Galina A. Belova, a Russian Egyptologist who led the excavation. "There are not so many [well preserved] mummies in El Faiyum at the moment. They are very rare." In a separate tomb, the excavators discovered the first completely intact mummy ever found at the necropolis. The team of U.S. and Russian archaeologists stumbled upon the burials during routine work in a section of the cemetery, which was used from the early fourth century B.C. to the seventh century A.D. Some 150 other tombs from various periods and dozens of poorly preserved mummies were also unearthed, though most of the graves had been plundered during a rash of robberies in the 20th century. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, said some of the newly discovered remains are the best yet found from the Ptolemaic era—the span of Greek rule that began shortly after the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great in 332 B.C. "One mummy was beautifully gilded, and another is in very good condition," said Hawass, who is also a National Geographic explorer-in-residence. "They show some of the best examples of mummies from this period." (The National Geographic Society owns National Geographic News.) Archaeologists also found a strange burial on the outskirts of the site containing the nonmummified remains of a child and a group of mummified dogs, a grave unlike any other yet found in Egypt. Coffins, Mummies, and Masks The four best preserved and largest of the newfound tombs contained human-shaped coffins that were mostly intact. Some showed slight damage near the feet, probably the result of ancient robbers rummaging for riches, experts said. The coffins' exteriors were inscribed with verses and images from the ancient Egytpian Book of the Dead, which Salima Ikram, an Egyptologist at the American University in Cairo (AUC), said were standard decorations "to help you get from this world to the next." Three of the coffins were wooden and lay parallel. A smaller fourth coffin—likely for a child—was made of papyrus or a similar material and was set at a slightly different angle. The shared burial may have belonged to a single family, experts said, adding that it is uncommon to find coffins set at different orientations in this region. Inside two of the coffins, mummies were covered at the head and feet with brightly colored cartonnage—a papier-mâché-like material often plastered over mummified bodies and decorated. One of the mummies bore a cartonnage mask painted in gold, symbolizing eternity. "It was a very sweet little mask," said Ikram, who x-rayed the mummies after the discovery. In a nearby tomb, archaeologists found a completely intact mummified female—the first to have eluded generations of treasure hunters here. The archaeologists said they plan to do more research, including facial reconstructions of the mummies, to determine their origins. Robbers Thievery has damaged almost all the tombs in Deir el-Banat, making it hard for experts to know what the graves looked like in antiquity. "The robbers come in regularly, so it is quite unusual to get intact burials," said Ikram of AUC. As a measure of how widespread the crime is, the excavations even turned up some contemporary digging tools, which were probably stashed away by frightened thieves who left hastily. The shallowness of the tombs—some of which are no more than a meter below the surface—makes them particularly attractive for looters. "Robbers have always investigated cemeteries since the ancient times," Belova, the Russian archaeologist, said. "We have a lot of robbers who want to have a lot of gold." The newly unearthed tombs may have been spared because of their relatively simple exteriors. Belova said her team had to rapidly document and remove the items because of security concerns. She also said she hoped the discovery would change Deir el-Banat's reputation as a site that has been looted clean. "It looks like a robbed area, but robbers cannot do a systematic study of a cemetery," she said. "That's why we still have a lot of chances to find something new here." Mummified Dogs One of the strangest discoveries made at the site was the nonmummified body of a child buried with several mummified dogs. The human remains, which were naturally mummified by the arid climate, were partially covered in a sack, its lower half surrounded by crudely mummified canines ranging from puppies to fully mature animals. "They are put in any which way, with no real sense of orientation," said AUC's Ikram, an animal mummy expert. Ancient Egyptians were known to keep domesticated pets and sometimes were buried with them. (Read related story: "Mummy Birds Recovered From Egypt Factory" [August 9, 2007].) Other animals were included in burials as part of a religious ritual, but this find is unlike any that has been documented, he said. "The kind of deposit [of animals] you have here is neither like a sacred deposit [nor] like a pet deposit," Ikram said. "It really is a very interesting new page in the archaeology of humans and animals in Egypt."