In Egyptian mythology Seshata, who invented writing, is shown clothed in leopard hide. The spots on the skin were thought to represent stars. The stars in the night sky symbolized eternity. This goddess not only kept track of all sacred and mathematical knowledge but even the number of years allotted the Pharaoh on Earth. After the introduction of Thoth she was depicted with a crescent moon above her displacing an even more ancient symbol, a seven-pointed star.
The tiger represents the greatest earthly power, as well as protection over human life. It chases away the so-called "three disasters": fire, thieves and ghosts. Ancient Chinese people believed that tigers turned white after they have lived for five centuries and that tigers could live for an entire millennium
