“In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.”
― Terry Pratchett, "The Unadulterated Cat"

Copper statue of the cat goddess Bastet.
Eighth to fourth centuries B.C.
Photograph by Mary Evans/Scala, Florence

How Egypt’s ancient city of divine cats was rediscovered
Clues from ancient texts guided European archaeologists in their long search for Bubastis, sacred to the Egyptian cat goddess Bastet.