The Sumerian Tablet That Says Cats Were Sent to Earth for One Purpose — And They Never Stopped

Overview

The subtitles present a dramatic, speculative interpretation of a long-buried Sumerian clay tablet (catalogued as N2847). The tablet is allegedly said to claim that cats were brought to Earth by the Anunnaki to perform protective functions against hidden, harmful entities.

Discovery and Delay

• 1927: During excavations at ancient Nippur, archaeologists found a small tablet sealed in a pottery jar.
• The tablet was logged quickly, but then left unread in a “residue drawer” for decades—reportedly because no senior scholar took interest in it.
• 1971: Oxford philologist Eleanor Ashworth (on an exchange at the University of Pennsylvania Museum) examined the residue drawer and realized early on that the tablet did not belong there.
• Ashworth completed her translation in 1973 (41 pages), but it was rejected by three journals. She then circulated it privately for years among a small scholarly (“underground”) network.

What the Tablet Is Said to Claim

The tablet’s narrative describes early humans suffering in sleep:

• illness
• unsettling mental “shapes”
• children waking and pointing at unseen corners

It attributes the cause to:

“things from the other side of the thin places” entering human dwellings while people sleep.

The proposed solution is to bring down a small creature from a “green star of the seventh house,” described as having abilities to perceive and resist what human senses cannot.

The Creature: “Mushhaddub” (Interpreted as a Ceremonial “Cat”)

The tablet is presented (in the video) as describing a creature in ways intended to be unmistakably cat-like:

• four legs
• varied tail positions
• glowing-return eyes
• silent pads
• fur that releases sparks when stroked

Ashworth is said to translate the creature’s name cautiously as “Mushhaddub,” argued to be a priestly/ceremonial term, contrasted with the common word “shur” for cats.

Seven Protective Functions Attributed to Cats

The core of the translation, as presented, is that cats carry out seven specific duties to keep the “thin places” from letting harmful presences into homes:

1. Guarding sleeping — anchoring the sleeper’s “inner light” so it can’t be drawn out.
2. Watching doorways — doorways are treated as transition points where intrusions are drawn from.
3. Testing new arrivals/objects — inspecting gifts, new people, and strange objects for contamination.
4. Marking — rubbing and leaving a signature that “seals” a dwelling against entries.
5. Breaking silences — disrupting quiet moments when silence becomes a doorway.
6. Holding the gaze — staring at the specific place where an intrusion is trying to complete entry.
7. The final throat-sound/purr — described as a frequency that seals remaining openings.

Consequences If Cats Were Removed

The tablet claims that if cats withdraw:

• “thin places” would reopen gradually
• within about three generations, the civilization built on protection would decay

It also warns that humans are beginning to treat cats as ordinary animals:

• feeding them carelessly
• driving them out of shrines
• forgetting the prayers

In this logic, neglect would weaken household sealing.

Claimed Historical Aftereffects (Egypt to Europe)

The video connects the Sumerian idea to later cat veneration, especially in Egypt, focusing on the goddess Bastet. It alleges:

• mummification of cats
• burial in dedicated necropolises
• extreme penalties for killing cats
• mourning rituals

The video then claims medieval Europe reinterpreted cat behavior as witchcraft and encouraged mass killing, which it frames as leaving European dwellings “unsealed.”

Final Takeaway and Challenge to Viewers

The video’s conclusion is that modern understanding of cats is “upside down” under the tablet’s logic:

• humans don’t “own” cats; cats were “posted” among humans
• domestication is reversed (cats accept the role)
• affection and care are portrayed as humans paying for ongoing cat protection

It ends by urging viewers to watch cat behavior at night—such as staring, roaming, and purring—as potentially deliberate protective work, not ordinary animal instincts.

Presenters or Contributors

• Eleanor Ashworth — Oxford philologist; translator of the tablet (per the subtitles)
• Unnamed narrator/host — the person delivering the story in the video
• Unnamed journal editors/reviewers — participants in the manuscript rejections