Vessel handle with sitting cat

This bronze statue with a rough surface represents the cat in a typical Egyptian posture, sitting calmly but alertly. The tail curls to the right foreleg. The small bronze handle on which the cat is sitting was probably attached to a vessel or furniture. The tenon in the handle served to attach the object to them. The goddess Bastet, venerated in the Nile Delta, was often represented as a sitting cat. From the Late Period onwards, her figure could appear on everyday and ritual objects, and from this time bronze cat statues and cat mummies were common votive objects in ancient Egyptian temples. This handle may have been a part of a ritual vessel or furniture.