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TheImiut fetish (jmy-wt)[1] is a religious object that has been documented throughout the history ofancient Egypt. It was a stuffed, headless animal skin, often of a feline or bull. This fetish was tied by the tail to a pole, terminating in alotus bud and inserted into a stand. The item was present inancient Egyptian funerary rites from at least the earliest dynasties. Although its origin and purpose is unknown, the imiut fetish dates as far back as theFirst Dynasty (3100–2890 BC).
The earliest known depiction of thejmy-wt fetish is on aPredynasticlug handle dating toNaqada IIc-d, which appears to show the procedure by which intestines were extracted from a sacrificial bird and tied to the fetish.[2] In theFirst Dynasty, the fetish appears on seals and labels during the reigns of kingsHor-Aha,Djer,Djet, and Den, where thejmy-wt is associated with ritual killings of prisoners. Another example found in 1914 by an expedition of theMetropolitan Museum of Art near the pyramid ofSenusret I (c. 1971-1928 BCE) was placed in a shrine.[3]
There are depictions of the imiut fetish on ancient Egyptian temples, and sometimes there were models of it included with the funerary equipment, most notably the two found in the burial chamber ofTutankhamun byHoward Carter. The fetish was later connected to the godAnubis and mummification around theFourth Dynasty, so it is sometimes called theAnubis fetish.
Logan suggests that thejmy.wt has its origin as a standard associated with kingship and transition, a pole upon which the intestines of a ritual animal sacrifice were hung. This he connects to an etymologyjmy.wt "that which is inside", analogous tojmyw "tumor".[2] In this scenario, the name was later reanalyzed as a reference to embalming after the association with Anubis.
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