british museum toy

But you can't buy this one to take home, since it dates from 1550-1070 BC.

A wooden cat from Thebes, Egypt, this plaything has bronze teeth and a handy string to make the jaws go snappity snap like your kitty's. No ears though. Time seems to have worn them away.

The Egyptians actually bred cats in great numbers and organized fashion "for use in the cult of the cat goddess Bastet," the museum website tells us. What kind of use? The website does not tell us that. I like to think they flopped about happily, attracting divine blessings.

Go see this ancient toy!