RAMM has an amazing natural history collection from all over the world including mammals, insects and birds. There are also many objects on display with a link to an animal in some way. This might be because it is made from part of the animal or decorated with an image of an animal.
Animals were very important to the Ancient Egyptians, whether as royal pets, beasts of burden, symbols of fertility, objects of fear or as animal gods.
They believed a god would adopt the skills, strengths and behaviours of a particular animal which would help them in their godly work.
Did you know the Ancient Egyptians may have worshipped between 800 and 2000 gods? Many were linked to an animal and would often be depicted with that animal’s head.
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The Gods
- Khepri – He rolls the sun across the sky every day where it sets at night and rises in the morning
- Serqet – She was the goddess of fertility, nature, animals, magic and healing venomous stings and bites
- Horus – He was the god of the sky and the son of Isis and Osiris. After killing his uncle Set, who had killed his father, Horus became Pharaoh. He lost an eye during the fight and the Eye of Horus became one of the most important symbols in ancient Egypt
- Thoth – He was the god of wisdom and writing. He was the patron of the educated scribes who were responsible for the administration of Egypt
- Sekhmet – She was a warrior goddess of war and the destroyer of the enemies of the sun god Re. She was also a goddess of healing
- Apophis – He was a demon of the underworld who tried to stop Re on his nightly journey across the sky in his solar barge
- Anubis – He was the god of death and the mummification. He would make the decision of letting the person into the afterlife to be reborn, depending on whether they had been a good person in life, or not
- Sobek – He was fierce and violent and was considered god of the army.
The Animals
Scorpion
Scorpions use their powerful claws and stinging tail to capture their prey and defend themselves. Interestingly, the exoskeleton of many scorpions contains chemicals that fluoresce blue-green when ultraviolet light is shone onto it. Most can be cured quite quickly with many not requiring medical attention at all. The Egyptian Fat-tailed Scorpion is one of the most deadly scorpions in the world.
Ibis
The Ibis was considered to be a sacred bird representing wisdom and writing in Ancient Egypt. It is a wading bird which sticks it’s long, curved beak down into the river mud to catch shelled creatures to eat. When it does this, it almost looks like it is drawing or writing in the mud. This juvenile male glossy ibis was collected in Topsham. They live in wetland habitats and use their long curved beaks to probe for prey including small fish, crabs and frogs.
Sekhmet amulet
Considered the King of Beasts but it is the lioness that is one of the most respected and feared predators and does most of the hunting for the pride. Her personality in Ancient Egypt was not only dangerous and destructive, but also protective and healing.
Figurine of Anubis
Jackals were a type of wolf and were considered to be ‘death dogs’ as they would lurk around cemeteries, scavenging for food. However, Jackals in Africa were black and black symbolised good fortune and rebirth. This figurine is from an ancient Egyptian ceremonial standard. It shows Anubis, the jackal-headed god associated with mummification and the afterlife. Dating from 661BC-332BC, it is made of copper alloy and measures approximately 4cm long and 3.5cm high.
Crocodile
Crocodiles lived in the River Nile and were greatly feared. There are tales of them killing many people. Anyone washing or collecting water could easily be snatched by the fierce crocodile if they weren’t paying attention. Amazingly, they were sometimes kept in temples and homes as pets.
Courtesy of Museum of Egyptian Art, Munich, Germany
Scarab Beetle
This ancient Egyptian heart scarab has a spell from the Book of the Dead written on its underside. It would have been wrapped into the bandages of a mummy near the heart. The scarab rolls the dung into a ball and then pushes it with its back legs to its nest where it buries it at sunset and digs it up at dawn.
Grass Snake
There were over 30 different types of snakes in ancient Egypt. Most were harmless to humans. But some were very dangerous. In much of the ancient world, the snake was seen as a symbol of evil power and demon from the underworld who was the enemy of the god Re.
Falcon
Hawks and falcons are birds of prey. They are extremely fast when folding their wings and diving to catch their prey. They also have incredible eyesight and are able to spot a tiny creature on the ground from very high in the sky. In Ancient Egyptian mythology he was god of the sky.
