At first glance, this object from the collection of the Museum Europäischer Kulturen (Museum of European Cultures, Berlin State Museums) appears to be the result of an unusually amicable collaboration between a blacksmith and a cat enthusiast. Closer inspection reveals a handcrafted axe whose blade has been sawn and filed into the unmistakable silhouette of a four-legged feline. But with upright ears, carefully incised whiskers, and vividly inlaid eyes, the cat does not merely decorate the tool – it has become the tool itself. The metal silhouette’s functional edge serves as a reminder that even the most charming companions may possess sharp qualities.

The artist’s decision to transform an ordinary implement into a characterful creature might reflect a desire to lighten daily labour with humour, or perhaps to personalize tools in workshop contexts. Whether this axe was ever used for splitting wood or served primarily as a display piece is unknown. In any case, its good state of preservation suggests its owner valued it more for conversation than for carpentry.

The combination of disarming charm and disquieting potential – after all, this is a cat you definitely should not pet – creates a playful tension. The wide, startled eyes evoke the moment many real cats experience when confronted with household tasks: total refusal. Yet here the cat stands eternally ready for work, frozen in a stance of dubious enthusiasm.

Collection: Museum Europäischer Kulturen (Museum of European Cultures, Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Steel and wood

Place of Production: made in Poland around 1980

Contribution by: Franziska Kabelitz

While in European contexts cats can be seen as a bad omen, connected to perceptions of witchcraft, feline companions were celebrated in East Turkestan, now in the modern-day People’s Republic of China. In many traditions in Central and East Asia, cat spirits are believed to be protectors of wealth and family. Just like real cats, cat spirits can also be temperamental and demand respect.

Displayed together with a perched monkey (I B 8812), reclined dog (I B 8816), and skull (I B 8811), the jade amulets feature three different feline figures: two lying down (I B 8813, I B 8815) and one crouching on a stone (I B 8817). A further amulet (I B 8814) stands out for its coral red colour. This amulet, which is in the shape of a cat lying on a stone, is carved out of soapstone which was also used in China to make seals and small statues.

According to the inscription, the amulets were used to promote good health and protect against black magic. Amulets are still worn throughout Central Asia and vary in material and shape. While these amulets are carved out of jade, listed as nephrite in museum correspondence, amulets can also be forged from metal and carry precious stones such as Lapis Lazuli. In Muslim communities like those living in East Turkestan, amulets can also hold Quranic inscriptions known as ta’weedh. The amulets were acquired in Kashgar which was a sizeable city in East Turkestan under Qing imperial rule.

This is just one example from a sizable collection of amulets housed in the museum. This part of the collection was acquired in Kashgar and consisted of three small cartons. First loaned to the Museum für Völkerkunde in 1903 by the traveller, collector, and member of the Berlin Society for Anthropology, Ethnology and Prehistory (BGAEU), Hermann Schoede, the collection was later gifted to the Museum in 1927.

Collection: Ethnologisches Museum (Ethnological Museum, Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Stone (Jade)

Place of Production: East Turkestan, early 20th century.

Dimensions: Height 2.5 cm, width 1.5 cm, depth 1 cm.

Contribution by: Dr. Fiona Naeem

Shown here is a didrachm (a double drachm in silver) from Tarentum, a denomination that formed the main nominal value – that is, the most important monetary unit – of the city. On the obverse, the city’s founder, Phalanthos, is depicted riding on a dolphin and accompanied by a fish. This is a common motif of the city, appearing on its coins for over a century.

On the reverse, a naked youth is depicted sitting on a stool. In his left hand he holds an oil flask and the associated scraper (the strigilis) – ancient instruments used for body cleansing in the gymnasion (a public place for athletic activities). In his right hand, the youth holds a spindle with a thread and plays with a small cat, which rears up in front of him.

The naked seated man appears on the city’s coins only within a relatively narrow time frame. Accompanied by animals, he appears on coins from 430–425 BCE. There is also a small number of coins on which the seated man plays with a dog. The cat therefore features only briefly, but prominently, on high-value issues.

Here we see a scene in which an idealised young man of the city is placed in a mundane everyday context. The setting of the gymnasium and the cleansing of the body is just as ordinary a framework as playing with a kitten. The way the young man on the reverse plays with the cat is no different from today. The coin thus vividly underscores how familiar the role of cats and society’s view of these furry friends already were more than 2400 years ago.

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Silver didrachm

Place of Production: Italy, 425–415 BCE

Dimensions: Weight: 7.88 g. Diameter: 23 mm. Die axis: 11h

Contribution by: Leonard Brey

This piece, minted in ancient Rhegion – today’s Reggio Calabria – is a tetradrachm (a fourfold drachm in silver). It is thus a higher-value denomination which, although not rare, was used less frequently in daily life (similar to a 100 Euro banknote).

The obverse shows a lion’s scalp – that is, the flayed hide of a lion, which could be worn as clothing (as a cloak or as a head covering). On the reverse we see Iokastos, a mythical “king” who was involved in the founding of the city. His garment has been draped around his hips. He is depicted with a beard and thus shown as more mature, and he holds a long staff in his right hand. Under his chair, a cat plays with a small ball. As with the coin from Tarentum, the cat is only one of several attributes and appears only for a brief period.

The meaning of the cat is less clear here than on the previous piece from Tarentum: Iokastos is not a “citizen,” and not even a human, but rather a mythical-heroic figure from the religious sphere. The figure also never interacts with the cat – the four-legged animal is merely an isolated pictorial element. Iokastos is also depicted without a cat on most coins. Usually he sits alone; more rarely a bird stands beneath his chair.

The cat therefore functions as a kind of cipher that accentuates the scene’s meaning – but its precise significance has been lost to us today. It is, however, clear that the playing cat was a familiar and understandable image at the time of the coin’s production. Although we puzzle over its exact meaning, this coin attests to the role of cats as more than just a utilitarian animal for pest control.

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Silver tetradrachm

Place of Production: Italy. 435–425 BCE

Dimensions: Weight: 17.07 g. Diameter: 26–29 mm. Die axis: 11h. Struck

Contribution by: Leonard Brey

Here we see a Baroque silver medal by the goldsmith and medal artist Sebastian Dadler. Medals are objects which, although similar to coins in their initially round shape and in their material – bronze, silver, and/or gold – were not intended for circulation or use as a means of payment. Instead, they are small works of art that often serve to honour and immortalise individuals, institutions, buildings, events, and concepts.

The obverse shows an erotic scene in which a cavalier kisses a woman, who is almost completely undressed. The figures’ clothing as well as hairstyle and beard fashion represent the style of their time and identify both as fashionable and well-to-do individuals. In front of them a table has been richly set with food and drink; two doves are sitting close together. The inscription provides the scene’s interpretation: SUSTINEMUR CONCORDIA — We are upheld by harmony.

All image elements underline this motif of harmony. The loving couple, whose closeness is further emphasised by the lady wearing the gentleman’s hat and pulling him toward her. Food and drink are plentiful, and the doves are courting one another as well.

The reverse forms the counterpart to the obverse:

A wrinkled older woman grabs an old man by his beard and beats him. He grabs her hair in an attempt to pull her away from him. On a table in front of them lies a broken, overturned jug whose contents spill across the surface. Next to it, a dog and a cat fight with one another. The legend summarizes the image: CONCORDIA PESSUMIMUS — Through discord we suffer the worst.

We are thus faces with the obverse’s exact opposite. An elderly married couple, their clothes simple, perhaps even poor, fight brutally with each other. On the table there is no food, and the drink has been wasted. Even the animals are brawling “like cat and dog.”

Here the cat is shown from a rather negative angle. The lively depiction of the cat fighting with a small dog almost allows the viewer to hear the hissing and screaming of the cat. Causing unrest and discord is also part of the nature of cats, and it is vividly portrayed on this medal.

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Silver medal

Place of Production: Saxony. 1627

Dimensions: Weight: 22.76 g. Diameter: 45 mm. Die axis: 12h. Struck

Contribution by: Leonard Brey

Another medal, this one made of bronze, celebrates on its obverse the animal protection law as well as the Paris Society for the Protection of Animals. The obverse was produced at an unknown time by Amédée Doublemard. It is unclear whether he also designed the wreath on the reverse. The wreath includes a dedication to a person who presumably received this medal from the Paris Society for the Protection of Animals for donations, services, or achievements.

The obverse shows Justitia – law personified – standing on a stepped pedestal bearing the inscription: SOCIÈTE PROTECTRICE DES ANIMAUX A PARIS – Society for the Protection of Animals in Paris. Above her head is a small star. She holds her right arm protectively over the animals surrounding her. In her left hand she holds a scale and leans on a tablet of laws symbolising the animal protection law of July 2, 1850. In the upper field, three birds fly; in the lower field, to the left stand a horse and a dog, to the right an ox and a cat. All turn their heads toward Justitia.

The reverse shows a broad laurel wreath. Inside it, an engraved dedication reads “A MR COLLON 1903.”

The animal protection law of 1850, also called the Grammont Law, was pushed through by Jacques Delmas de Grammont, then president of the Society for the Protection of Animals. It ensured that public abuse of animals became a punishable offense. A small step from today’s perspective, yet the starting point for all modern animal protection laws in France.

It is assumed that the Society for the Protection of Animals commissioned Doublemard to create the medal and then awarded it with a personalised engraving. On the coin market, works are regularly found that were presented to various individuals in different years. In some cases, the reason for the award is also engraved; on this specimen, however, it remains unnamed. We only know that it was intended for a no-longer-identifiable Monsieur Collon in the year 1903.

From today’s 2025’s perspective, it seems fascinating that the animal protection law, from its beginnings, included not only pets but also livestock. This can likely be explained by the fact that the separation between pets and other animals is a very modern phenomenon that did not really exist in the past. Cats and dogs also counted among working animals, imbued with a clear function.

The animals on the medal are depicted in a very lifelike and artistic manner. Even if the cat is somewhat overshadowed by the powerful ox and the larger dog, its depiction – with a slightly open mouth and raised tail – is very expressive.

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: Bronze medal

Place of Production: France. 1903.

Dimensions: Weight: 36.46 g. Diameter: 42 mm. Die axis: 12h. Struck

Contribution by: Leonard Brey

These two coins take us into the present day. A €10.00 coin made of silver and a €2.50 coin made of copper-nickel, issued by the National Bank of Belgium, minted in 2015 on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo;

The obverses show the member states of the European Union, the denomination, and the issuing country, Belgium. The reverses show different motifs:

The €10 coin depicts Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, and Henry Paget, Earl of Anglesey, riding to the left on horseback. The Duke of Wellington is shown in a commanding pose. To the left, the wounded William II, future King of the Netherlands, is carried away by four soldiers. Both scenes are recessed into the coin’s field, so that to the left the silhouette of Napoleon Bonaparte becomes visible.

The €2.50 coin shows the so-called Lion’s Mound. The monument is crowned by a lion placing one paw on a globe. Below the monument, the troop positions of the Battle of Waterloo are indicated schematically.

In fact, neither the lion nor the theme is the reason for the selection of these two coins. If we look closer at the obverses of both coins, we see two small symbols below the schematic depiction of Greece. The first symbol is the helmeted head of the archangel Michael, with a small cross at the tip of the helmet. This symbol identifies the minting location, Brussels.

The second symbol is a small seated cat. This is the personal symbol of the mint director of the National Bank of Belgium, Bernard Gillard, who held the office from 2012 to 2016.

According to Gillard’s own statements, the reason for choosing this image is his love of cats and the great significance the four-legged companions had in his life. For four years, the small furry friend was minted on Belgian commemorative coins and was happily discussed among collectors.

Left

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: 2.5 euro coin in copper-nickel

Place of Production: Belgium. 2015

Dimensions: Weight: 11.0 g. Diameter: 26 mm. Die axis: 12h. Struck

Contribution by: Leonard Brey

Right

Collection: Numismatic Collection (Berlin State Museums)

Materials: 10 euro coin in silver.

Place of Production: Belgium. 2015

Dimensions: Weight: 18.75 g. Diameter: 33 mm. Die axis: 12h. Struck

Contribution by: Leonard Brey