BAST/BASTET:
The goddess of joy, protector of women, sun's warmth and life-giving power. Bast, a national deity of ancient Egypt, was the cat headed goddess of the beneficial aspect of the Sun, opposing Sekhmet, who personified it's destructive power. She was said to be the sister or daughter of Ra, and also his wife. She was a kind goddess, and protect men against evil spirits and contagious disease. Her city in Egypt was Bubastis, was home to a huge cat cemetery. Cats were considered sacred in ancient Egypt, loved for the skill in killing snakes, which infested the Nile delta. Bast was the mother of Nefertum, who completed the Memphis Triad. This statue is made of cold cast resin & hand painted. She is depicted here in her full cat form. Egyptians revered cats for their fertility, wore Bastet amulets to insure having chilren. Bastet also promoted feelings of festivity, intoxication. Some reprentations are of cat-headed women playing musical instruments. Ancient Egyptians believed cats to be the embodiment of Bastet and were so revered that they were often mummified upon death, and buried in cat-shaped sarcophagi.
Royal Bastet

Royal Bastet

"She is a feline goddess, daughter of the sun god “Ra”. Bastet was originally a lion goddess, but after 1000 B.C. as her cult developed, she became more associated with the cat and was considered to be the center counterpart of the lion goddess Sekhmet. Cats could be observed skilfully hunting and catching snakes, which had special relevance for the Egyptians since the snake was the symbol of Apophis, the demonic enemy of the sun god Ra. So cats became animals sacred to the solar deity. Bastet was especially worshipped at her temple at Bubastis (“the house of Bastet”). As a sun goddess, Bastet was the goddess of plenty and the mistress of pleasure. The celebrating of her festivals were renowned for being the most lavish of all the gods of Egypt. Bastet was also associated with the moon and in myth became the eye of the moon. The Greeks associated her with the Greek goddess Artemis. She is usually depicted as a cat-headed woman. In one hand she holds either a sistrum, a kind of musical rattle, or an aegis, in her other hand she often carries a basket. 12.5""H (32 cm) : Bonded marble, Gold finish with color detail "

"Egyptian Cat Bastet - Saqqara, Egypt. 1200 BC"

"The first reference to the domestic cat appears in the eleventh dynasty. Because it was hostile to snakes, it became a sacred animal of the Sun God. In the New Kingdom, the male cat was regarded as an incarnation of the Sun God and the female cat was equated with the solar eye. Feline figures may display a scarab, the symbol of the rising sun, engraved on the head or breast thus showing their solar significance. The domestic cat attained special significance as the sacred animal of the Goddess Bastet. Hundreds of figures were set up as votive offerings in the temple at Bubastis in order that the donor might share in the Goddess’s grace. Actual mummies of cats were buried by the thousands in special cemeteries in the area.15""H "