Nedjem is the first cat that we know by name. He lived in ancient Egypt. He belonged to Puimre who was a priest during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut. He must have loved the cat he called “sweetie”. We know about Nedjem from a relief in Puimre’s tomb. This should not be surprising because the Egyptians loved cats.
Cats were first domesticated in the Near East around 10,000 years ago. Egyptians were the first people to have cats as pets. Most of these cats were mackeral tabbies that were sand-colored with darker stripes. Cats were loved because they ate mice that tried to eat their stored grain. But they were also considered to be sacred because it was believed they had the spirit of the goddess Bastet in them. This goddess was one of the most important. She was goddess of cats, protection, pregnancy, fertility, music, warfare, and ointments. She must have little time off. Bastet was depicted as a woman with a cat’s head.
Egyptians loved their cats. They were considered to be part of the family. Wall paintings depicted them as protectors of the family. Cats sometimes were dressed up and had collars with jewels and bells. Upper class men and women buried statues of their cats in their tombs. 3,000 cat mummies were found buried in a pet cemetery. Some Egyptians shaved their eyebrows in mourning for their dead kitty. Harming a cat resulted in harsh punishment. A Roman who visited Egypt in 59 B.C. accidentally killed a cat and a mob killed him.
The greatest Egyptian Pharaoh, Thutmose the Third, had a cat he called Ta Miu, which meant “she-cat”. A stone coffin was found with her depicted on the cover and her body inside.
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