The history of the Siamese cat is a colorful one! It is a history laden with almost as much fiction as fact...

Siamese FACTS

We can trace the history of the Siamese cat all the way back to cat-venerating religions where animal worship was once widespread. According to the New Encyclopedia of the Cat (2001), "Cult activities reflecting the ancient Egyptian fascination with felines focused chiefly on two anthropomorphic deities- the lion-headed godess Sekhmet and her sister, the cat-headed Bastet, (above left and right images). Bastet was a contradictory figure because she held the dual associations of life and death. This connection was taken to the extreme with the mummification of large numbers of domestic cats. During the late 19th century, excavators at the temple of Bast at Beni Hassan, Egypt, discovered over 300,000 mummified cats at a single site! This extraordinary find shows the prevalence of cat worship. After the mummies had been offered to the gods, priests gathered them up and buried them in nearby cat cemeteries. When a cat died, its owners would try to give it a decent burial. They went into deep mourning and shaved off their eyebrows. In Egypt, to kill a cat, even unintentionally, was punishable by death. Extreme veneration of cats contributed to the eventual downfall of the Egyptian empire. In Buddhist temples across Asia, cats are kept as mousers. The Siamese breed is said to be descended from these temple cats. " (Fogle, pps. 26-27)

Siamese cats have existed for centuries in Thailand (formerly Siam). The Siamese originated from a natural gene mutation over 500 years ago. In the late 1700's , Pallas described a light colored cat with dark color on the ears, feet, tail, and face. This same cat was was revered in Thailand by Buddhist monks and royalty.

Described and illustrated in manuscripts called the "Tamra Maew" (Cat Poems), estimated to be written in the 1700's, the breed was first seen outside of Asia in 1884 when the British Consul- General, Edward Blencowe Gould, brought a pair of the cats to Britain as a gift for his sister, Lillian Jane Yeley, (Co-founder of the Siamese Cat Club in 1901). In their early days in Britain they were called the "Royal Cat of Siam", reflecting reports that they had previously been kept only by Siamese royalty. The Siamese were first shown at the Crystal Palace in 1885. Wankee, (pictured above) born in Hong Kong, became the first U.K. Siamese Champion in 1898. According to Cats Magazine, 1890 is the date the first Siamese arrived in the United States. It is recorded that the first Siamese in America to win a Championship was Madison California, a seal point male owned by Lucy C. Johnstone. The original Siamese imports were medium in size, rather long bodies, muscular, graceful cats. They ranged from slender to substantial but were not extreme in any way. In the 1950's-1960's, many breeders and cat show judges began to favor the more slender look and through selctive breeding , created the long, narrow-bodeid, wedge shaped headed cats that became the modern show Siamese. The major cat associations altered their official standards to favor this new streamlined version of the Siamese and by the 1980's, cats of the original style were no longer present in the show ring..

In the late 1980's breeders of the older style of Siamese organized in order to preserve old, genetically healthy lines from extinction. These are known as breeders of the "Traditional" type or "Old Style" Siamese. *

Note: Twiline Siamese thinks that all healthy Siamese are wonderful, however, our cattery is registered with the Cat Fanciers Association, Inc. The goal is to try to achieve the ideal Siamese of which the CFA standard describes as, " The ideal Siamese is a medium sized, svelte, refined cat with long tapering lines, very muscular. Males may be proportionate;y larger..."

Siamese fads and fancies may come and go. But the original Siamese personality that draws us to these delightful animals, will always stay the same! Extremely intelligent, extra-communicative, extra-athletic, EXTRAORDINARY!

Siamese FABLES

Fiction as told in "This is the Siamese Cat" by Marge Naples.

Why some Siamese have crossed eyes

"One fable tells of a female Siamese left alone by her mate to guard the sacred goblet of their master, who had gone missing. The male cat went off in search of a new master. Even though he was gone a long time the female Siamese never left her wtach. She squinted at the goblet for so many days and nights that her eyes became crossed and remained that way for the rest of her life."

Why some Siamese have kinked tails

"Another story tells of a princess's rings being placed on the tail of a Siamese cats and the tail knotted at the end to keep the rings from sliding off; so of course, Siamese tails were kinked ever after!"

 

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*wikipedia.org/wiki/Siamese-(cat)

Twiline Siamese is located in Gwynn Oak, Maryland

Contact Christallin at: (443) 388-3820 or AllinChrist2@att.net

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