The Cynocephali (singular: Cynocephalus, meaning “dog-headed”) were legendary beings described in ancient and medieval texts as humanoids with the heads of dogs or wolves.
WoodwardTV writes “When we see Saint Christopher with a canine head, images of the Egyptian god Anubis standing watch over the dead, our first instinct is to think, ok well that’s just the way they are depicted in this image, with the head of a dog, just because it’s art…until someone points it out as a pattern.”
