Leopards, a Symbol of Royalty and Divinity

 

People in Egypt have been observing the natural world since long before they built the pyramids.

In ancient Egyptian society, leopards represented determination and power; the animal's representation in the tomb was likely intended to strengthen the spirit of the recently deceased for the journey to the land of the dead.

Priests required specific items of dress, one of which was the pelt of a leopard. Fastened over a shoulder or hanging down the back, the leopard skin served as a powerful symbol of regeneration, particularly relevant for priests conducting rituals carried out on behalf of the dead.

Some ranks of the Egyptian priesthood wore leopard-skin mantles, or cloaks, while performing their official duties, marking them as high priest.

Tutankhamun, who was in theory the high priest of every god, was buried with this type of mantle. Depictions suggest that priests wore actual pelts, but nearly all the rare surviving examples are made from painted linen.

In ancient times, the wild leopard had a much wider distribution than it does now; it inhabited most of Egypt and was at home in both the desert and wetlands. Moving between two worlds as a liminal being, it was a fitting escort for the deceased. Both marsh and desert were perceived as battle zones, no-man's lands between the world of the living and the world of the dead. The passage through these unknown regions was full of obstacles, manifested in the wild and dangerous animals that needed to be overcome by the king and his leopard working side by side in the battle between good and evil.

In another interpretation, the leopard was an ancient sky goddess, her pelt studded with stars straddling the nocturnal horizon. This notion ties the animal in with the solar circuit, the king's vehicle across the heavens (like the solar boat) that protected him along the way and ensured his safe journey.

Leopards appear as hieroglyphs and statues in many Egyptian artworks. Some pharaohs kept the felines as exotic pets; others shelled out vast riches for their rosette-dappled pelts, shipped in from afar. Regarded as fearsome and powerful, the great cats were, in many ways, reminiscent of the gods.