Ancient Egyptians - Egyptian Animals
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All about Ancient Egyptians

Ancient Egyptian Daily Life

List of Egyptian Animals
There were many animals in ancient animals which are detailed in the following lists.

List of Egyptian Animals (Wild)

List of Egyptian Animals (Domesticated)

The Horse (luxury animal introduced by the Hyksos)

Mules followed the horse

Camels (rare animal, introduced by the Persians in the 27th Dynasty)

List of Sacred Egyptian Animals

List of Egyptian Pets

Royal Pets
Cheetahs
Lions
Hounds

Facts about Egyptian Animals
Facts and information the fast and easy way via the Egyptian Animals Fact sheet.

Ancient Egypt - Egyptian Animals Fact Sheet

Fact 1 on Egyptian Animals: Donkeys were used for transportation purposes

Fact 2 on Egyptian Animals: The horse was considered to be a luxury animal owned by only the wealthiest of Egyptians. The horse was most often used by the military harnessed to chariots. Horses were introduced by the Hyksos during the 15th/16/17th Dynasties

Fact 3 on Egyptian Animals: Mules were introduced in the New Kingdom and bred as the offspring from female horses and male donkeys. Mules were used as beasts of burden to transport goods.

Fact 4 on Egyptian Animals: Oxen were used as beast of burden and especially for ploughing the fields.

Fact 5 on Egyptian Animals: The ancient Egyptians kept many of their animals with them in their Homes and Houses. They supplied milk, wool, meat, eggs, leather, skins, horns and fat.

Fact 6 on Egyptian Animals: Fish: There were fifty-two species of fish including the huge Nile Perch, sturgeon, mullet, the tiger fish, lungfish and mudfish. The catfish and the eel were considered to be sacred creatures. Eels, resembling sacred snakes were frequently mummified or given as offerings to the god Atum.

Fact 7 on Egyptian Animals: Birds: The different types of birds included falcons, kites, geese, cranes, herons, pigeons, ibis, vultures and owls.

Fact 8 on Egyptian Animals: The Ancient Egyptians worshipped some of their gods in their animal forms, believed to be the manifestation or the living image of a god - see below.

Fact 9 on Egyptian Animals: Cats: Cats were sacred and any person who killed a cat in ancient Egypt was sentenced to death. When a cat died the members of the family would shave off their eyebrows as a sign of mourning.

Fact 10 on Egyptian Animals: The Nile Crocodile of ancient Egypt is the largest crocodile in Africa and can grow up to 20 feet (6 meters) and weigh up to 1,650 pounds (730 kilograms). The Nile crocodile, Crocodylus niloticus, was the biggest and most dangerous predator living in ancient Egypt and is now extinct in the lower reaches of the Nile river.

Ancient Egypt - Egyptian Animals Fact Sheet

Facts about Egyptian Animals
Discover fast, interesting fun facts about Egyptian Animals for kids with some amazing, cool and quick information about ancient Egypt and Egyptians. Ideal for children, homework, schools, teachers and kids of all ages! Find fascinating fun facts about Egyptian Animals for kids and the history, culture and civilisation of the ancient Egyptians and ancient Egypt. Interesting, fun facts about Egyptian Animals for research, schools, students and kids of all ages.

Facts about Egyptian Animals
Learn about the ancient Egyptians the fast and easy way via the Egyptian Animals Fact sheet.

Ancient Egypt - Egyptian Animals Fact Sheet

Fact 11 on Egyptian Animals:

Pet lions and other big cats such as pet cheetahs were kept by the kings of ancient Egypt as symbols of the sun god Ra for their powers of protection

Fact 12 on Egyptian Animals:

One crocodile at the Temple of Sobek, was taught to be tame. Its ears were adorned with golden ear-rings and fore-paws with bracelets.

Fact 13 on Egyptian Animals:

The hippopotamus was highly dangerous and some kings of Egypt were known to hunt them. The skin of the hippo wa so tough that when dried it is made into javelins.

Fact 14 on Egyptian Animals:

The ibis was the bird sacred to Thoth. The ibis bird has legs like a crane and a strongly hooked beak - see picture below.

Fact 15 on Egyptian Animals:

Bees were important to the ancient Egyptians, providing both honey and wax.

Fact 16 on Egyptian Animals:

The lion, hyena, lynx and deer were not native to the country but may occasionally have appeared on the banks of the Nile, driven from the desert by hunger.

Fact 17 on Egyptian Animals:

Sheep were kept for their milk, meat, skins and wool.

Fact 18 on Egyptian Animals:

Rams were a symbol of fertility, and identified with the god Khnum who was depicted as a ram-headed god with green skin. The strange, twisted horizontal horns coming out of the sides of the skull, as depicted on Khnum are like nothing we would now associate with a ram. This type of ram was the 'Ovis longipes palaeo-aegyptiacus' and is now extinct.

Fact 19 on Egyptian Animals:

Egyptian Animals were used to indicate the name of ancient kings of Egypt. The serekh was the earliest convention used to set apart the royal name in ancient Egyptian iconography, and used long before the cartouche. A chisel above a catfish was the symbol for the king's name in the early serekhs. The Nile Catfish was sacred to the goddess Hatmehit.

Fact 20 on Egyptian Animals:

The Horus falcon also relates to the title of the king as a son of Ra and was later included as part of the serekh indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name.

Ancient Egypt - Egyptian Animals Fact Sheet

Egyptian Priestess of Thoth and the sacred ibis

Egyptian Animals and the Ancient Egyptian Gods
The Ancient Egyptians worshipped some of the gods in their animal forms. These sacred animals were believed to be the manifestation or the living image of a god. Apis, the bull-god, was believed to be the manifestation or living image of Ptah. There were many cat goddesses in ancient Egypt including Bastet, Sekmet, Mafdet and Tefnut. The cat goddess Bastet represented both the pet cat and also the war-like aspect of a lioness, lynx or cheetah. Some sacred animals were buried as mummies. Over 300,000 mummified cats were discovered when the temple of the cat goddess Bastet was excavated. Other mummified animals included crocodiles and snakes. Many animals were bred in large numbers on ancient Egyptian farms for the purpose of ritual sacrifice.

Egyptian Gods with the Heads of Animals
Many ancient Egyptian gods were depicted with the heads of animals. This did not mean hat the Egyptians worshipped animals. The animal heads of the gods were used as a recognition aid to immediately identify a god and to visually convey the powers and attributes of the animal that were believed to be inherent in the god. Examples of the Egyptian gods depicted with the heads of animals were Sobek the crocodile-headed god symbolizing the attributes of strength and power. The ibis-headed god Thoth, the jackal headed god Anubis, the cat or lion goddesses such as Bastet and Mafdet, the falcon-headed god Horus, the scarab-headed god Khepri, the ram-headed god Khnum, the cobra-headed goddess Meretseger, the cow-headed goddess Hathor and Ammit who was depicted as having the head of a crocodile, the torso of a lioness and the hindquarters of a hippopotamus, a combination of the most terrifying and ferocious creatures known to the ancient Egyptians.

Thoth, the Egyptian ibis-headed god

Egyptian goddess Ammit

Anubis, the Egyptian jackal-headed god

Egyptian Animals
Learning about the ancient Egyptians and Egyptian Animals inspires everyone to visit historical sites and undertake Egypt Travel and Tours to experience the wonders of this magical land at first hand. Many people choose to experience a tour of Egypt on a Nile Cruise stopping at the famous destinations and sites of Egypt such as the Pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx. The information and facts about Egyptian Animals will provide you with a great insight into Egypt and the legacy of the ancient Egyptians.

Egyptian Animals