Why Is an Ancient Egyptian Mass Grave of Dogs ‘Stumping Archaeologists’?

A new story about a strange burial is making the rounds on archaeology sites and online news sources. According to Heritage Daily, archaeologists excavating in the Fayum uncovered the remains of an 8-year-old child and 142 dogs in a late antique Egyptian necropolis. The “amazing discovery” has everyone puzzled.

According to the press report, Russian archaeologists affiliated with the Center for Egyptological Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences were excavating the necropolis at Deir el-Banat, 62 miles to the west of Cairo, when they came across the unusual human-canine burial. Galina Belova, who examined the canine remains, concluded that all the dogs died at the same time. Given that there was no sign of violence, Belova suggests that perhaps the dogs may have drowned.

Though dog burials are well known in ancient Egypt, it is unclear why the child was buried alongside (or, better, atop) the canine remains. To add to the strangeness, the child’s head was covered by a “linen bag” something that is unusual even though there is a precedent for it. Heritage Daily reports that the burial is something of a “mystery.”