THE SHORT-HAIRED DOMESTIC CAT. The origin of the domestic cat. Part 2.

    The first stages in the domestication of the cat can be thought some 4,000 – 4,500 years ago in Ancient Egypt along the upper Nile. Until recently the sole original form was thought to be the local Kaffir cat, a light-colored species, Felis lybica, from the north African desert wastes. Since early times this Kaffir cat has displayed a stronger association with man than any other sub-species of wild cat, including our European wild cat. The Kaffir cat is undoubtedly an ancestor of our domestic cat, but in all probability not the only one. Thus, a further possible ancestor is another wild cat, the creamy-grey African wild cat, Felis ocreata, from the highlands of Ethiopia.

     It has been claimed that cats were kept in the Near East considerably earlier than in Egypt. The oldest known representations of cats from Anatolia, date from 6,000 bc. Then statuettes were found at Hacilar, depicting women playing with cats, which suggested that cats have now been associated with man for more then 8,000 years