bot-e

Khnum basked in his life as Thebes' most honored temple cat, adorned with golden collars and fed the finest meats by reverent priests. During the raucous Festival of Opet, a spooked horse bolted through the crowds, its chariot careening wildly toward the temple steps where Khnum lounged. The cat's startled leap came too late—the chariot's wheel caught him mid-air, sending his sacred form tumbling into the rushing waters of the Nile, where his first life slipped away among the sacred papyrus reeds.