- A pair of earring that are a cat lover's delight. Very popular.
- A classic and graceful image of the domestic cat that goes back to ancient Egypt. Closely resembles the Siamese cat we know today.
- These quality earrings are of solid sterling silver, (.925) including the ear wire.
- Sterling
silver is the precious metal that is kind to sensitive ears, as it
meets highest E.U. standards for nickel-safe, and California standards
for lead-safe. The earring is 18mm long without the ear wire (about 5/8
inches), is 8mm wide (just under 1/3") and weighs 8 carats--1.6 grams.
Length including the ear wire is 30mm (1 1/5").
- The Ancient Egyptians loved their pet cats, and the cats of Royalty were adorned with precious jewelry. In Egypt's hieroglyphic alphabet the cat was the hieroglyph for the word "joy". However the cat was also revered because of its ability to control the rodent population which threatened the stored grain on which life depended. She was seen as the protector of the household.
- Cats were indeed sacred. When Cleopatra was ten, a foreign visitor to Egypt accidentally killed a cat, and a furious mob wanted to kill him. Cleopatra's father sent an official to reason with the mob, suggesting that as a foreigner, the visitor should be given a special exemption.
The mob killed the foreigner anyway.
- To the Egyptians the cat also represented the feline Goddess Bastet, or Bast. Originally a lion goddess, and a goddess of war, Bastet evolved over time into a protective goddess of both lower and upper Egypt, associated with the other female goddesses, Wadjet , Hathor, Mut, and Sekmet. In the 1st millenium B.C. Bastet was the goddess who protected against contagious diseases and evil spirits. The name Bastet literally meant "She of the ointment jar" and Bastet was associated with both protective salves and mummification. Over 300,000 mummified cats have been found at Bastet's temple.
- Because cats are tender mothers, Egyptian women who wanted children wore Bastet cat amulets to bring them fertility.
- "The Cat in Ancient Egypt" by Jaromir Malek is a wonderful study for those who are interested in this subject, published in the U.S. by the U of Pennsylvania press, and in the U.K. by the British Museum Press, 1993.
- While domestic cats are believed to have originated in Egypt, the earliest known remains are those of a kitten found in a human grave in Cyprus that is about 9500 years old.
- Ref#66239616554
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