Wolf Tattoo God Anubis

Anubis may have been a wolf

He is always described as jackal-headed, and for most of the last two centuries that was simply accepted.

Then the animal itself turned out to be misfiled. What everyone called the Egyptian jackal was shown by genetic work published in 2011 to be no jackal at all: it is a wolf, closely related to the grey wolf, and it has since been renamed the African golden wolf.

That animal lived alongside the people who drew Anubis. So the god of embalming, the Lord of the Sacred Land, was very likely wearing the head of a wolf the whole time.

Why a scavenger became a protector

The logic is grim and rather brilliant. Canids dug at desert graves, so the animal most associated with disturbing the dead was made their guardian instead.

Give the threat the job. It is the same instinct that puts gargoyles on a cathedral.

The tattoo

5.4 x 7.5 cm, a compact design that runs wider than it is tall, since it is a head shown in profile facing left. That shape suits an inner forearm, a shoulder blade or the outside of a calf.

Apply to clean dry skin with no moisturiser or oil on it, since anything greasy stops the transfer taking. Press with a damp sponge, hold, and peel slowly.

Our article on Anubis covers the mythology. See the wolf temporary tattoo range.

Free worldwide shipping, 7 to 12 business days. 30 day returns. See our shipping policy for details.