Mummifying Millions: The Canine Catacombs and the Animal Cult Industry of Ancient Egypt

Many associate two popular themes with ancient Egypt: animal worship and mummies. The two have been combined on unprecedented levels deep in the Catacombs of Anubis in North Saqqara. The necropolis of Saqqara is the burial site of kings, commoners and sacred animals.

Millions upon millions of animal mummies have been found in the dark, carved stone tunnels beneath the location of Egypt’s earliest pyramid. The astounding piles of preserved animal remains not only signify a cultural and religious phenomenon, but also speak to the mammoth industry that operated to maintain a source of constant tributes to the gods.

“The Catacombs of Anubis at North Saqqara”, a study published this month in the archaeological journal Antiquity, examines the underground world associated with the temples dedicated to animal deities of ancient Egypt.