Smud Khoi of Cats
I n her book, the Siamese Cat (1934), Phyllis Wade suggested that the Siamese originated in Egypt. She bases this theory on the large number of mummified cats found there. The bonstructure of these cats would be like that of the Siamese. She supports this claim with the fact that during the reign of Cleopatra (69-30 BC) the trade between Egypt and Asia was very intensive. This trade would have brought the Siamese from Egypt to Siam. We now know that the bone structure of the mummified cats is rampant throughout the world. That does not mean that it may well be possible that Siamese cats were seen in Egypt.
If we base ourselves on the fact of today we have to presume that the Siamese cat is a century-old breed that originates in t he ancient Siam, the present Thailand. Proof for that can be found in the capital Bangkok. In the National library there are manuscripts describing the foundation of Ayutthaya (1350-1767), which was the capital for 417 years. The most well-known manuscripts in the cat world are the Cat Book Poems (1350-1767) and the Smud Khoi (1868-1910). A picture book with in it cats that strongly resemble a Siamese as we know it today, cats with a light body and dark extremities. Besides that the Siamese are also described in Sanskrit, but strangely enough there is no mention of the striking characteristic of the blue eyes. One would expect that this unique feature, especially for Asians, would be described poetically. On the contrary, red eyes are mentioned. This may refer to the albino characteristics inextricably connected with the Siamese. Albinos have a light blue eye colour with a reddish glow.
Besides pictures of the Siamese the Smud Khoi also gives illustrations of other Siamese cats. Of the 23 kinds pictured in the Smud Khoi only 4 can be found in the present day streets of Bangkok. The most well-known is the Korat or Sri Sawad which originates from the province of Nakon Ratchasima. In Thailand they are better known as Meaw See Dok Lao, or Meaw Maled. They have a heart shaped head and are coloured a silverish blue. The eyes vary from light green to yellow. The Thai believe that this cat brings luck and is well looked after and respected. A second kind is the WI-CH-AN-MAAD (pronounced as wicheen mas) This has the characteristics if the cat we call Siamese. They have the dark points and lighter bodies and light blue eyes. The third cat is the Supalak, or Thong Daeng, a cat with brown copperish fur and yellow eyes with a green iris. All features match the sable Burmese. Finally we have the Khao Manee or Khao Plod. A white cat with one green and one blue eye, also called odd-eye. The Smud Khoi divides the cats into two groups. 17 kinds are luck bringers and six are unlucky. The cat we call Siamese belongs to the luck bringers and is described as follows: “The upper part of the mouth, the tail, all four legs and ears are all coloured black. The eyes are reddish gold. The WI-CH-AN-MAAD has a white fur”.
Funny is that we also see a cat which strongly resembles the bi-colour, the Gow Theem (9 spots). Remarkable is that all cats in the pictures have long, whip-like tails. It is generally known that the many of the first Siamese had kinks in their tails, stronger even we still have them today. Wankee, the first UK Champion had a kinked tail. It is a well-known phenomenon in Asian cats. Charles Darwin even mentioned it in his writings.
The maker of the Smud Khoi was a high placed priest, Somdej Phra Buddhacharn Buddhasamahathera. King Rama V ordered him to paint all Siamese cats. As far as we can check the name Siamese was invented by the Europeans and related to the country of origin.
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Detail of Korat Cat in Smud Khoi of Cats. |
| Autors : Priest of Thailand . |