After exercise

© Clare Strand 2016 courtesy MACK

by Sami Schlichting

David de Tscharner 

The cats and dogs lie as if asleep, in individual graves. Many wore collars or other adornments, and they had been cared for through injury and old age, like today’s pets. But the last person to bury a beloved animal companion in this arid Egyptian land on the coast of the Red Sea did so nearly 2000 years ago.

The site, located in the early Roman port of Berenice, was found 10 years ago, but its purpose was mysterious. Now, a detailed excavation has unearthed the burials of nearly 600 cats and dogs, along with the strongest evidence yet that these animals were treasured pets. That would make the site the oldest known pet cemetery, the authors argue, suggesting the modern concept of pets wasn’t alien to the ancient world.

KING CRIMSON - Recording Session Extract (2-4) [Bonus track]

Woman with a Daffodil, Lucian Freud, summer 1945, MoMA: Painting and Sculpture

Purchase Size: 9 3/8 x 5 5/8" (23.8 x 14.3 cm) Medium: Oil on board on canvas