Much that is connected with the history of Ancient Egypt,is still shrouded in mystery: mysterious pyramids, powerful pharaohs, treasures of tombs, sphinxes, sands of time... No less mysterious is the breed of cats of the pharaohs, the "Egyptian Mau", or, as some sources call it, the Egyptian Mau. Images of cats of this breed (and "mau" is translated as "cat") adorn the walls of the ancient pyramids of Egypt. In general, cats were sacred animals in Egypt.
Cats in Ancient Egypt
The first written records of catsThe Egyptian Mau dates back to the fifth century BC, and the author of these references is the ancient Greek historian Herodotus (he told the world a lot about it). Herodotus reports that three thousand years before our era, every Egyptian kept a cat in his house. However, Herodotus does not say what they were like. The very fact that there were many domestic cats in Ancient Egypt is not surprising. After all, it is known that cats were valued and respected there. The Egyptians treated these sacred animals with divine veneration. There were numerous statues of the goddess Bast and the cat Bastet in the temples. And the supreme god Ra was often depicted as the Great Cat. Images of a red cat (the Sun god) cutting off the head of a snake with a knife have survived to this day. And the original appearance of the Sun in Egyptian mythology is a cheetah (also a cat). Even the death of ordinary domestic cats was accompanied by a sacred ritual. When a cat died, it was mummified. Cat mummies were enclosed in gold and silver sarcophagi inlaid with precious stones. During archaeological excavations in the city of Beni Hasan, a whole cemetery of cats was discovered with burials of one hundred and eighty thousand (!) cat mummies. It is also known that owners, as a sign of grief for a dead cat, shaved their eyebrows and wore mourning for many days.
History of the breed
The exotic cat has a long pedigreeEgyptian Mau descends from the cats of the great pharaohs. This is a very ancient breed, formed as a result of natural selection. The appearance of Mau cats has undergone virtually no noticeable changes for more than three thousand years. For a very, very long time, this ancient breed was preserved only in its homeland. And the modern history of the Pharaoh cat breed began a hundred years ago. European cat breeders decided to recreate the Egyptian Mau breed. But the first results of recreating the breed were "reduced to nothing" during the Second World War. The second attempt, which ended in success, was made in the fifties by the Russian princess Natalia Trubetskaya, who lived in Italy. The princess was the owner of two Mau cats (Gepa and Ludol), brought from Egypt. Trubetskaya registered them in the FIFe association, and after immigrating to the United States, she founded the Fatima cattery. As a result of long and painstaking work by American felinologists, the Egyptian Mau was recognized by the CFA as an official breed in 1977. These cats were brought to Europe in 1988, and they first arrived in Russia only in the summer of 2010. They were acquired by Polina Gorelkina, the owner of the EgyptSila cattery.
Features of the exterior of the cat of the pharaohs
The Egyptian Mau is a miniature leopard.By the way, they call it a living room leopard. But the dark spots are not the only markings on the coat. The distinctive feature of these cats is their bracelets and necklaces. The necklaces are contrasting stripes around the neck, and the bracelets are half rings on the upper part of the front paws. In addition, a real Pharaoh's cat is marked with a scarab sign. This is a dark pattern in the form of the letter W, located at the level of the ears, connected to the "letter" M above the eyes. And the eyes ... The eyes of Egyptian cats are exclusively green, large and almond-shaped. Like true Egyptian women of Ancient Egypt, Pharaoh's cats have "goddess makeup": two long arrows that emphasize the eyes and run along the cheekbones to the temples. Another unusual feature of the appearance of Egyptian Mau cats is small folds-bags in front of the hind legs. It is generally accepted that these folds hanging under the belly are needed to swing the hind legs when running fast and jumping high.
Breed Standard
The Egyptian Mau is a type of cat that resembles the Abyssinian. The CFA standard sets the following requirements for the breed.
Disqualifying features of the Egyptian Mau breed: lack of characteristic markings, yellow eyes.
Character of cat pharaohs
The Egyptian Mau is special not only because of itspedigree and striking appearance. It is also characterized by distinctive (sometimes contradictory) character traits. For example, cats of this breed are at the same time independent and devoted to their owners, balanced and passionate. Mau cats are very energetic. They love walks and even agree to wear a collar or harness for this purpose. They are active and flexible, playful and sociable, and cannot stand loneliness. They have a melodic and expressive voice, by which you can always recognize the emotions and mood of the animal. Like all cats, Mau are not deprived of the desire to have a sweet nap after lunch or to bask on the owner's lap. At the same time, they are unobtrusive and always feel whether a person is disposed to such communication or not. When overwhelmed with joyful emotions, cats jump on their front (!) paws, wagging their tail so quickly that it is simply impossible to see it.
Care of the cat
Like all domestic animals, Egyptian catsMau cats require attention and care from their owners. And above all, their wonderful fur needs care. These cats benefit from even just stroking, not to mention the fact that they need constant brushing: both help remove dead fur. For daily brushing, you need a special comb with frequent teeth, and for periodic, more intensive brushing, a rubber brush. In addition, it is also useful to polish the fur with soft suede, nylon or silk scarf. Hygiene procedures include removing excess ear secretion, trimming claws and bathing the animal as needed. You should also monitor the condition of the teeth, and the health of the cat in general.
Curious facts
Egyptian Mau is a breed of cat that is stillvery few in number, and therefore still rare and expensive. Representatives of this breed mainly live in the United States, but there is also a Mau cattery in Europe (Germany, Italy, Holland, France). In Russia, there is only one single Egyptian Mau cattery, which is located in the Moscow region and is called "Egyptian Force". Therefore, it is quite difficult to acquire this rare cat, but, as true connoisseurs of the breed say, such a cat is worth the money spent on it. We recommend reading:
