A brief History of the Siamese and Oriental
Shorthair
by John G. Smithson
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five
*****Note***** This has been slit into five parts to reduce the file size. However, each file is approx 5MB *****Note*****
About Siamese
Siamese - The Royal Cats of Siam
The Siamese is the most distinctive of all breeds of cat and is a favourite of the cat world. Their popularity knows no bounds and each year many new owners are captivated by their charms. They give affection and companionship generously and expect love and loyalty in return. Once having been owned by a Siamese no other cat will suffice.
The general appearance of a Siamese cat is one of svelte polished sleekness with a well balanced body, fine slim legs, small oval feet, and long tapering tail. The head is often described as wedge shaped with large wide set ears. Their coats are short and fine and require very little attention. Their distinctive coat pattern, where the colour is restricted to the points (head, ears, legs and tail), and brilliant blue eyes ensures they stand out in a crowd and are readily identifiable as "something special". Legend has it that they were rewarded by the Gods with the gift of blue eyes which so enhances their beauty and their sometimes kinked tails were used by princesses to hold their rings safe while they bathed. They are graceful, elegant cats with a classical beauty that is all their own.
In type and shape all Siamese cats are the same: they differ only in colour, and regardless of their colour they are all delightfully intelligent and make excellent family pets.
A Brief History Of The Breed
There is no doubt that the Siamese cat we have today originated in Thailand (previously known as Siam) where they were venerated as guardians of the temples, and belonged exclusively to the Royal Family. When a member of the Royal Family died a Siamese cat was selected to receive the dead person's soul, and it then spent the rest of its life in ceremonial luxury at one of the temples with monks and priests as its servants. The kinked tails and crossed eyes were an important characteristic, and there are numerous legends as to their origin. These days these two characteristics still occasionally surface, but are not considered desirable.
Siamese have now been known in the West for over one hundred years, but existed for centuries prior to that in their native country Thailand. The first entry in the UK Siamese Register was a pair owned by Mrs Lilian J Veley, sister of the British Consul-General in Bangkok in the 1880's. This entry was dated 1884, but a newspaper article on the Crystal Palace show in 1879 reports that there were exhibits having a type of Siamese pointed coat pattern.
Siamese cats were first seen in New Zealand in the early 1930's. They were considered to be such a novelty that the Auckland Zoo had a number of them on exhibition, and the Zoo was the main source of kittens in those days. The Zoo obtained "wild specimens directly from Siam" through agents in Singapore. Stud service could also be obtained from the Zoo, but this practice ceased in the early 1950's by which time imports from England and Australia had arrived to widen the gene pool.
In more recent times it is again the English imported males that have had the most influence, and feature strongly in the pedigrees of New Zealand's current breeding stock. This is perhaps because few imports from America have reached New Zealand shores due to the very strict quarantine requirements for any cats other than those born in either England or Australia.
STANDARD OF POINTS
The New Zealand standard of points is based on the English GCCF Standard from where most of the original stock was imported. They are known as Group 24 on the show bench.
Standard of Points
Head (including size and shape of eyes, ear shape and set) - 25
Body Type (including shape, size, bone and length of tail) - 25
Coat texture - 10
Condition - 5
Colour (coat and point) - 20
Eye Colour - 15
General Standard
The Siamese Cat should be a beautifully balanced animal with head, ears and neck carried on a long svelte body, supported on fine legs and feet, with a tail in proportion.
The head and profile should be wedge shaped, neither round nor pointed. The mask complete, connected by tracings with the ears (except in kittens), the eyes a deep blue, a green tinge to be considered a fault. The expression should be one of alertness and intelligence.
Head & Ears- Head long and well proportioned, carried upon an elegant neck, with width between ears, narrowing in perfectly straight lines to a fine muzzle, with a straight profile and firm chin in line with the upper jaw. Ears large and pricked, wide at base. Eyes oriental in shape and slanting towards the nose, but with width between. No tendency to squint.
Eye Colour - Sealpoint and derivatives - Clear brilliant deep blue
- All others - clear bright vivid blue
Body & Tail - Medium in size, body long and svelte, legs proportionately slim, hind legs slightly higher than the front, feet small and oval, tail long and tapering. The body, legs, feet, head and tail all in proportion, giving the whole a well balanced appearance.
Points - Mask, ears, feet and tail, dense and clearly defined colour, matching in basic colour on all points, showing clear contrast between points and body colour. Mask complete and (except in kittens) connected by tracings with the ears.
Coat- Very short and fine in texture, glossy and close lying.
Faults
White toe or toes
Incorrect eye colour
Point and body colour that does not adhere to the standard for that particular
colour
Permanent squint in eye or eyes
(Definition of a squint: When the eyes are so placed they appear to look
permanently at the nose)
Any kink not at the extremity of the tail
THE BASIC COLOURS:
SEALPOINT SIAMESE- SIA
The traditional colour of a Siamese cat is Sealpoint. The sensational colour pattern of pale creamy coat shading to dense seal brown points, and clear brilliant deep blue eyes first set their paws on the road to fame in the late 1800's.
BLUEPOINT SIAMESE- SIA A
According to the records the first Bluepoint Siamese was exhibited in England in 1890. The points are grey-blue and the body colour glacial white, shading gradually to the same cold tone as the points.
CHOCOLATEPOINT SIAMESE- SIA B
The colour standard for a Chocolatepoint requires the points to be the colour of a bar of chocolate, and the body colouring ivory all over, with very little shading. Chocolatepoints appeared in litters as early as 1900 but it was many years later before they were officially recognised.
LILACPOINT SIAMESE- SIA C
Lilacpoint Siamese are derived from matings between Siamese carrying both chocolate and blue colouring. These Siamese have delicate mushroom pink points, faded lilac pads and nose leather, and their blue eyes contrast well with their off-white (magnolia) body colouring.
REDPOINT SIAMESE - SIA D
With a point colour ranging from apricot to red and white body colouring Siamese of this colouring can trace their beginnings back to a planned mating in the 1940's.
TORTIEPOINT SIAMESE - SIA E
With their tortoiseshell patterning the "Naughty Torties" as they are affectionately known, have a mixture of colour on their points and mottled shading on their otherwise pale bodies. They are closely linked to the Redpoint Siamese and, as with torties of other breeds, are almost exclusively female.
LYNXPOINT SIAMESE- SIA F
Seal Lynxpoint Siamese cats appeared in the 1950's, and resulted originally from a cross between a Siamese and a domestic tabby. They are now, and have been for some time, fully pedigreed Siamese with clearly defined stripes on their points, pale bodies, brilliant blue eyes, spotted whisker pads, and thumb prints on their ears. Lynxpoints come in a variety of colours, ie seal, blue, chocolate, lilac, red and even tortie!.
FOREIGN WHITE - SIA W
A Foreign White is merely a Siamese wearing a white overcoat as a disguise because the gene that produces a white coat is dominant masks any underlying colour. However, their vivid blue eyes, which are linked with the Siamese coat pattern, indicate their Siamese ancestry, and when mated to a Siamese will produce only Siamese kittens, whereas a Blue eyed Oriental White will produce a proportion of oriental kittens when mated to a Siamese.