From Anubis, the Egyptian god of the afterlife, to Cerberus, the three-headed guardian of the underworld, these animals have been seen as protectors, messengers, and even supernatural beings.

Anubis took care of the recently dead ... Osiris was the god of the underworld and the afterlife. He has a pharaoh’s beard and his legs are wrapped in mummy bandages. Sekhmet was a warrior ...