Tag: Ancient Egypt

‘Divine Felines: Cats of Ancient Egypt’ Exhibit Opens at the Brooklyn Museum

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ancient egypt catsThe Brooklyn Museum recently launched a new show called “Divine Felines: Cats of Ancient Egypt”. The exhibit demonstrates the importance of cats in ancient Egyptian imagery.

The collection features 30 feline representations, including a large limestone lion, a bronze Pharaoh as a Sphinx, and a cast-bronze figurine of a cat nursing her kittens.

The museum explains:

“Likely first domesticated in ancient Egypt, cats were revered for their fertility and valued for their ability to protect homes and granaries from vermin. But felines were also associated with royalty and closely linked with a number of deities.”

 

Ancient Egypt Exhibit Opens in the Museum of Fine Arts

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Earlier this month, the Museum of Fine Arts opened an extraordinary exhibit on Ancient Egypt. The display shows the historical, artistic side of objects frequently seen in adventure movies, like mummies, mummy cases, limestone sphinxes and papyrus.

The exhibit, entitled “Art and Magic: Treasures from the Fondation Gandur Pour l’Art,” focuses on the “art and magic” of ancient Egypt and its fascinating history.

The exhibit premiered on December 17th, and will remain open to the public until the end of April.

“The Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg is proud to bring these distinguished works of art to America,” Kent Lydecker, Museum Curator, said in a press release. “The quality of the objects will be a revelation to scholars and to the public.”

Egyptologist Dr. Bianchi was brought onto the exhibit’s team as a guest curator. He explained that the spirituality of the Egyptian nation is apparent in their art and design. Materials gathered for the exhibition were treated with special care, with priests and workers working together in the process. Some objects were even subjected to rituals before being moved to and from the quarry.