The Coffin of The She-Cat
of Crown Prince Thutmose ("Thutmose V")
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Cairo CG 5003 JE 30172 |
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This cat's coffin, possibly a canopic box (Reisner and Abd-Ul-Rahman 1967: 392), reflects the few indicators we have of the ancient Egyptians' love of cats. Crown Prince Thutmose, the eldest son of Amenhotep III, had this coffin duly prepared for his pet cat upon her death. Her name was apparently "tA-miAt", meaning "The Cat (feminine)." As a means of shorthand, many Egyptologists render the cat's name as either "Ta-Miaut" or "The She-Cat." Here, both terms are used. Found near Mit Rahineh in 1892, the "coffin" for The She-Cat is made of white limestone and is 0.64m H x 0.44m W x 0.648m long (25.2" H x 17.32" W x 25.5" L). First published by Daressy in 1893, and published more in detail by Borchardt in 1907, the coffin can be described as an oblong box, with no cleats on the bottom, with a hollow lid consisting of 2 rectangular ends and a 3-sided roof. |
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The hieroglyphic inscription commences in the middle of the roof of the lid, and then proceeds to the left and then right side of the coffin lid roof. Depending upon which of the various translations one follows, the inscriptions then move along the sides of the coffin lid, then to each end of the coffin, first with Nephthys and later to Isis, and then finally to the right and left sides of the coffin (el-Shabban 2000).
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The lid of the She-Cat Coffin |
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Nephthys (Front of coffin) Isis (Back of coffin) |
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Left side of the She-Cat Coffin Right Side of the She-Cat Coffin |
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Prince Thutmose's sentiment for The She-Cat is evidenced by the series of supplications by various deities to care for the animal in the afterlife, but the initial opening lines of the inscription appear to acknowledge the cat's justification and eventual deification in the afterlife was a given, just as with human deceased. At times, The She-Cat is referred to as male in the supplications of various deities, which is not unknown even in female human burials of the New Kingdom as well. The glyphs read:
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Middle of the Roof:
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Words spoken by Osiris, Ta-Miaut
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I bristle before the Sky, and
its parts that are upon (it).
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I myself am placed among the
imperishable ones that are in the Sky,
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(For) I am Ta-Miaut, the Triumphant.
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Along the left side of the Roof:
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Made under the administration
of the eldest son of the King, beloved by him, leader of craftsmen,
the priest Thutmose.
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Along the right side of the Roof:
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Made under the administration
of the son of the King, Overseer of the prophets of Upper and Lower
Egypt, leader of craftsmen, the priest Thutmose.
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Front, with Nephthys, top line:
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Words spoken by Osiris: Ta-Miaut
is not tired (*)
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Left side, top line:
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Nor weary is the body of Ta-Miaut,
justified before the Great God.
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The rear, with Isis, top line:
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Words spoken by Isis: I embrace
you in my arms, Osiris
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Right side of the coffin lid:
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Words spoken by Nut: This son
(of) Osiris inherits the governing of the Two Lands, (just as ) Horus,
son of Isis.
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The revered one, Ta-Miaut.
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The rear of the sarcophagus, with Isis, top line:
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Words spoken by Isis: Geb, your
arms embrace around
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Osiris Ta-Miaut, you shine upon
his face, (you) open his eyes, triumphant.
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The front of the sarcophagus, with Nephthys, top line:
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Words spoken by Nephthys: I
envelope
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My brother, Osiris Ta-Miaut,
the Triumphant.
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Right side, with Ta-Miaut and cat-mummy, right-hand inscription:
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The revered one with Hapi, Osiris
Ta-Miaut, justified by the Great God.
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Right side, with Ta-Miaut and cat-mummy, left-hand inscription:
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The revered one with Qeben-senef,
Osiris Ta-Miaut.
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Left side, with Ta-Miaut and offering table, right-hand inscription:
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The revered one with Dua-mutef,
Osiris Ta-Miaut, justified by the Great God.
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Left side, with Ta-Miaut and offering table, left-hand inscription:
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The revered one with Imsety,
Osiris Ta-Miaut, Triumphant.
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* Here, “tired” and “weary” is a euphemism for “dead.” Osiris, for example, is said to be “the weary” or “tired” (Zandee 1960: 82) |
This translation, using the translation order suggested by el-Shabban (2000) can also be downloaded as a PDF file
(clicking on the above PDF link will either open Adobe Acrobat Reader, or prompt you to save the file).
Bibliography on the Coffin of The She-Cat
Bochardt, L. 1907. Ein Katzensarg aus dem neuen Reiches. ÄZ 44: 97.
Daressy, G. 1893. Notes et remarques. Recueil de travaux relatifs à la philologie et à l'archéologie égyptiennes et assyriennes XIV: 165-185, specifically 174-175.
Fischer, H. G. 1977. More Ancient Egyptian Names of Dogs and Other Animals. Metropolitan Museum Journal 12: 173-178.
Reisner, G. A. and M. H. Abd-Ul-Rahman. 1967. Catalogue Général des Antiquités Égyptiennes du Musée du Caire: No. 4001-4740 and 4977-5033: Canopics: 392-395. Service des Antiquités de l'Égypte. Cairo: IFAO.
el-Shabban, S. 2000. The Cat's coffin of DHwty-ms in the Cairo Museum. Discussions in Egyptology 46: 65-78.
Zandee, J. 1960. Death as an Enemy: According to Ancient Egyptian Conceptions. Studies in the History of Religions (Supplements to Numen). Vol. V. W. F. Klasens. Leiden: Brill.
© Katherine Griffis-Greenberg 2006