Crocodiles were mummified in huge numbers as offerings to Sobek. They were used as talismans throughout pharaonic Egypt to ward off evil, either by wearing crocodile skins as clothing, or by hanging a crocodile over the doors of homes.

Most crocodile mummies are of small animals, which suggests that the Egyptians had the means to hatch and keep the young alive until they were required. Archaeological evidence reinforces this theory, with the discovery of areas dedicated to the incubation of eggs and rearing of hatchlings. Some were pampered as cult animals and allowed to die a natural death.

As the crocodiles grew larger, the risk to crocodile keepers increased, suggesting perhaps that larger specimens were captured in the wild and hastily dispatched for mummification. Research on the mummified remains of larger animals has revealed evidence of skull trauma inflicted by humans probably as an attempt to immobilise and kill the animal.