A collection of spells needed to travel safely through the after life realm of Duat

Sarcophagus for a Cat

▫️This wooden coffin once housed the mummified remains of a young cat around five months old. Revered as sacred animals associated with the goddess Bastet, millions of cats were bred, sacrificed, mummified and dedicated as votive offerings at temples across #Egypt. Vast deposits of cat mummies have been discovered at major cult centres, including Bubastis and Saqqara. This one is from Bubastis.

The seated coffin retains inlaid eyes, traces of gilding and a green-painted head, while the mummy preserves fragments of its original linen wrappings.

Late Period–Ptolemaic Period, c. 664–30 B.C.

Late Roman Sarcophagus Discovered Intact and Sealed in Croatia

The emergency archaeological excavations carried out on the plot at 8 Zorina Street, in the historic center of Cavtat in Croatia, have yielded a discovery of exceptional importance for the understanding of Late Antiquity occupation on the Dalmatian coast.

The work, conducted by the team from the Museums and Galleries of Konavle under the direction of archaeologist Helena Puhara, has brought to light a stone sarcophagus from the Late Roman period that remains in its original position, closed and sealed with lime mortar, which still seals the joint between the lid and the funerary chest—making this find one of the few fully intact examples of its kind in the Croatian archaeological record.

The context of the discovery points to the necropolis of the Roman colony of Epidaurum, a settlement founded on the Adriatic coast whose material remains have surfaced intermittently during urban interventions in Cavtat. On this occasion, the preventive research documented a considerable number of burials associated with various construction types, though none with the significance of the newly unearthed one.

It is a sarcophagus of Salonitan workmanship, meaning it comes from the workshops of Salona, the great provincial capital of Dalmatia, with an approximate dating between the 4th and 6th centuries AD—a period marked by the transition from the classical world to the early Middle Ages and by substantial changes in funerary practices and territorial organization.

The uniqueness of the piece lies not only in its age or typology but in the state of preservation in which it appeared. Archaeologists confirmed that the sarcophagus remained where it had originally been placed, without displacement or looting, and that the lime mortar joint between the cover slab and the lower container had not been broken.

This structural integrity ensures that the primary burial deposit has remained unaltered for over fifteen centuries, offering an exceptional opportunity to study the inhumation rituals, physical anthropology, and material culture associated with the Late Roman elites of the region.

The approximate weight of the stone structure, calculated at about five tons, required extreme caution during the fieldwork, both in the documentation phase and in the subsequent extraction. The sarcophagus was located at a depth of about three meters below the current ground level, indicating the thickness of the sediment accumulated over the funerary area through the centuries and the successive occupations that raised the ground level.

Inside the chest, specialists were able to verify the existence of a single individual buried as the primary inhumation, although the condition of the skeletal remains is fragile and fragmentary, with a degree of preservation that makes it difficult, at first glance, to determine parameters such as the age or sex of the deceased—questions that will need to be resolved through laboratory analysis.

Alongside the skeletal remains, researchers recovered various organic deposits and other accompanying materials, whose exact nature and function will be clarified in upcoming study phases. These elements, along with samples of the lime mortar that sealed the tomb, were extracted following strict chain-of-custody protocols for subsequent examination in specialized laboratories, where dating, spectrometry, and micromorphological analysis techniques will allow for precise characterization of the grave goods and biological residues present.

The most delicate operation of the entire campaign was undoubtedly the lifting of the cover, the extraction of the sarcophagus, and its transfer to a permanent location outside the excavation site. This process, which required precise calculation of the anchor points and the use of appropriate mechanical means to move such a large mass without compromising the stone’s integrity, was directed by restorer Siniša Bizjak, with the collaboration of sculptor Tomislav Šalov.

One of the preliminary steps before extraction involved removing the lime mortar that sealed the lid to the body of the sarcophagus, a task carried out by Ana Požar Piplica, who was also responsible for sampling the materials intended for analytical testing.

This location, chosen for its visibility and integration into the Cavtat heritage route, allows residents and visitors to directly view the funerary monument, providing a tangible testimony to the Roman presence beneath the town’s modern streets. The decision to display the find at this point reflects the desire to turn the discovery into an educational and scenic element that reinforces the historical memory of the site without detaching it from its original geographical context.

By Antonio García.

Sarcophagus with the Myth of Selene and Endymion. Marble (ca. 200–220 CE) This carved Roman sarcophagus was dedicated by Aninia Hilara to her mother, Arria, whose portrait appears on the lid. The front relief portrays the myth of Selene, the moon goddess, who fell in love with the mortal shepherd Endymion.