Recently, archaeologists uncovered an Egyptian tomb with the body of an eight-year-old child, buried with 142 dogs. Of the 142 dogs, 87% were puppies when they died. As a result, the conditions of the grave have left archaeologists asking questions.
A Tomb Hidden in the Desert
Inside a necropolis near the Fayoum oasis, 62 miles south of Cairo, archaeologists have been working for several years now. There, they’ve been revealing burials dating from the 4th century BC to the 7th century AD, says Heritage Daily. Atef-Pehu, or the twenty-first nome of ancient Upper Egypt. Many ruins lie scattered around the oasis, like Crocodilopolis, dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek.
Reassuringly, zoologist Galina Belova said that after examining the dogs, there was no evidence of violent death. Concludingly, she believed it was likely they all died at once. Interestingly, the dog remains had blue traces of clay. Historically common in Ancient Egyptian reservoirs, the clay suggested the dogs may have drowned.
Contrastingly, there was little evidence to help piece together the child’s story. According to Archaeology, the child could’ve been the dogs’ caretaker, and died alongside them. Notably, the child had a linen bag tied over his head. Actually, the only other burial where this has happened was an execution by an arrow, says the Jerusalem Post.
Dogs Held a Place in Ancient Egypt
Not surprisingly, animal burials were a regular occurrence in ancient Egyptian life. Actually, many Egyptian gods presented themselves as animals. For example, Anubis–the jackal-headed god of the underworld. And, many Egyptians believed animals had souls. For instance, some people even mummified their dogs or used them as burial amulets.
In short, whatever the circumstances may have been for the untimely burial, one thing is certain. There was time and attention paid to burying that child with their beloved dogs. Additionally, the discovery underlines how significant dogs were to ancient civilizations.
