Anubis Dynasty. In Egypt's Early Dynastic period (c. 3100 – c. 2686 BC), Anubis was portrayed in full animal form, with a "jackal" head and body. A "jackal" god, probably Anubis, is depicted in stone inscriptions from the reigns of Hor-Aha, Djer, and other pharaohs of the First Dynasty. Since Predynastic Egypt, when the dead were buried in shallow graves, "jackals" had been strongly associated with cemeteries because they were scavengers which uncovered human bodies and ate their flesh. In the spirit of "fighting like with like," a "jackal" was chosen to protect the dead, because "a common problem (and cause
Ancient Egyptian offering formula typical offering formula: The offering formula always begins with the phrase: This phrase was in use since Old Egyptian, and literally means "an offering given by the king." This dedication does not indicate that the gift was personally given by the king; rather, it identifies the funerary offering as being royally authorized. Because the king was seen as an intermediary between the people of Egypt and the gods, the offering was made in his name. Next the formula names a god of the dead and several of his epithets. Usually the god is Osiris, Anubis, or (rarely) Geb, Wepwawet, or