Old Style Siamese (by Brigitte Sierck of las joyas Thai Cattery)
translated from German by: Eline Geertsema
As lover and breeder of the older type of Siamese (Old Style Siamese) it is my wish to inform the interested visitors of my website about a bit of history of the beginning of Siamese as well as the change in type over the years. My summary is not a full report, I just have limited myself to the most import things in my view. (Photo above: Litter "Tachin", owner Lady Marcus Beresford, from "The Book Of The Cat" by Frances Simpson, 1903)
In old Siam and the Thailand of today the Siamese is called Wichien-Maat, there are two translations of these words, one is "Gold and Diamonds", the other is "Moondiamond". Both sound well and are good descriptions for our blue eyed masked beauties from far away Siam, who got totally different characteristics from the British. At the Crystal Palace Show at 16th July 1871 two Siamese were shown, who were said to be like a "nightmare", "ugly" and "frightning" cats. We should keep in mind that in those days the ideal catbreed in the eyes of the British was a long haired cat, in one colour, in tabby or tortoiseshell, but not an elegant cat with points and short coat. Still some British were fascinated by these nightmare cats, because in 1872 there was another Siamese to see in the Crystal Palace Show. As far as we know now these first imported Siamese were not used in breeding.
In 1884 Mr. Owen Gould brought Pho and Mia to England, who can be found as Nr. 1a and 2a in the Siamese Cat Register. They were a gift to his sister Miss Lilian Gould (later Mrs. Lilian Veley), who showed their progeny Duen Ngai, Kalahom and Khronata very successfully at the Crystal Palace Show in 1885. Unfortunately the kittens were probably infected with Feline Panleukopenia Virus at that show and died a week later.
Mrs. Veleys cats Duen Ngai, Kalahom and Khronata
More Siamese were imported in the following years and one can say that the current Siamese breeding is based on eleven of these imported cats. Unfortunately there is not much Photo material from this time, but the photos that are available show strong cats, who do not have much in common with Siamese as they look today.
Tiam O' Shian IV (Photo above) ist a grandson of the famous, in 1886 by Mrs. Vyvyan imported stud Tiam O' Shian. The first Siamese Champion, Ch. Wankee (Photo below), was imported from Hongkong by Mrs. Robinson in 1895. (Both Photos from "The Book Of the Cat" by Frances Simpson, 1903)
Harrison Weir, President of the "The National Cat Club", describes in his in 1889 published book "Our Cats and All About Them" the Siamese cat more detailed and illustrated their looks with drawings:
In 1892 Harrison Weir wrote the first Siamese breed standard. In the year of 1902 the "Siamese Cat Club" was founded by enthousiastic admirers of the Siamese cat. To the founding committee belonged amongst others also Miss Forestier Walker and her sister Mrs. Vyvyan, who belonged to the pioneers in Siamese breeding in England and always owned a direct progeny of the famous Tiam O'Shian, The Siamese Cat Club wrote a new Siamese breed standard and for the first time they made a distinction between the "Royal Cat of Siam", cream coloured body with sharp defined Points, blue eyes (describing the colour Seal Point as we know it today) and the "Chocolate Cat of Siam" with deepbrown body with hardly visible Points, blue eyes (describing the current Tonkanese breed or even the Burmese cat).
Frances Simpson dedicated a large chapter to the Siamese in her in 1903 published book "The Book Of The Cat" and it contains some valuable information about the early days of Siamese breeding including some photos. The next two photos of King Kesho and Ah Choo are from this book.
In 1921 Mr. and Mrs. Hindley imported a female Siamese, Puteh, from Malaysia. Puteh is the foundation of the famous Prestwick Cattery, a Cattery that existed for many years and which had a strong influence on Siamese breeding that cannot be compared to any other. Unfortunately there is no photo of Puteh, but there are of other Prestwick cats, like Puteh's at 30th April 1924 born daughter Prestwick Perak (Photo below from the in 1934 published book "The Siamese Cat" by Phyl Wade).
The "Siamese Cat Registe" which was founded in 1924 contained hundreds of cats, but until the 1930s new cats were imported. To the last imported cats belong Miss Gold's "Oriental Minoo Pinklepurr" and "Oriental Nai Tabhi" (Photo below from "The Siamese Cat" by Phyl Wade, 1934).
In 1933 a new Breed Standard was recorded by the Siamese Cat Club and in 1935 the until then not recognised colour Blue point was added. The photos below show the on 3rd September 1945 born Blue point queen "Salween Fairmaid" and the at 15th November 1948 born stud "Misselfore Ya-Rain (both photos are from the book "Siamese Cats by Phyllis Lauder, 1950).
In 1958 the Siamese Breed Standard was again altered and the colours Chocolate Point and Lilac point were added. In these times the looks of our Siamese began to change, a change that lasts until today. In her in 1967 published book "Siamese Cats Past and Present" Greta Hindley (Prestwick Cattery) warns for this change: "Breeders of today have come to consider "type" as the most important point about a Siamese. This is all to the good, but do not let us carry it to extremes like some breeders have done with dogs, and so spoil a very beautiful animal, by making it unpleasing and ugly. We are tending that way, and that way danger lies; some heads are becoming too narrow at the top, and eyes too close together. We can even overdo the length of the head, although this does not matter so much as long as it is well balanced. Ears should be large, but not too large, wide at the base, but always pricked (with no tendency to flop and never pointing to the side), so giving that alert expression which is so characteristic and (with the usual unexpectedness of the Siamese) is rather contradicted by the mysterious sphinx-like expression of the eye, which is often referred to as the "Siamese Expression" or "Siamese look". Even bodies can be too long and ungainly, and tails too, so that instead of a neat, dapper little cat with everything well-balanced, we shall at alst produce an ungainly beast with no pretension to daintiness."
Niad Som Phong (Photo below), born at 6th March 1960, is a from England imported Stud in possession of Otto Sebastian. In his ancestors are also some Prestwick cats. (Photo from "Die Edelkatze" Nr. 3 of 1968)
In England the old type of Siamese has been preserved next to the modern type until this day. In England there are still numerous breeders that dedicate themselves to the preservation of these old Siamese lines. Some of the Siamese from these old lines were and are still found in "las joyas Thai" Cattery, for example Admewam Kristofer Robin, Hancas Humbug, Hancas Fudge, Solomio Sir Paul, Sinope Balius and Marajade Jethro Tull. Jethro's greatgreatgrandfather is the on 4th March 1974 born Penyrallt Picasso. (1st row: left Penyrallt Picasso, right greatgreatgrandson Marajade Jethro Tull, 2nd row: left Hancas Fudge and right Hancas Humbug)
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In the USA there are also some breeders who dedicate themselves to the preservatuon of the Old Style Siamese. I would like to mention the very dedicated breeder Dr. Cristy Bird of Sarsenstone Cattery. Dr. Bird has not only the preservation of the old type of Siamese at heart, but the health of the breed especially. Therefore she walks in the footsteps of the English Siamese pioneers and has imported several Siamese from Thailand in order to introduce fresh bloodlines. Direct progeny of her imported stud Chiang Mai Piab of Sarsenstone are amongst others the queens Scofflaw Chula and Scofflaw Tiena (Cattery las joyas Thai) as well as the in Cattery "von der Falkenhöhe" living queens Sarsenstone Salome and Sarsenstone Seraphine. (Photo below: left Sarsenstone Seraphine, right Scofflaw Chula)
Whether one prefers the "modern" or the "old" type of Siamese, it is really a question of personal taste and everyone has a different taste. It is important to me to stress that the "Old Style Siamese" is not just a breed name, but just a distinction between the old and the modern type of Siamese. All Old Style Saimese are registered Siamese cats with a Siamese pedigree. By no means am I speaking of Thai cats from the WCF Breed Standard, who are registered as Thai and have a Thai pedigree. Often Thai cats are called "traditional Siamese", "Applehead Siamese" or even "Old Style Siamese" by their breeders. Only a few of these often attractive cats are from old Siamese lines and ar often of questionable heritage. For the lover of Siamese this is a hardly understandable tangle or maze, which can only be detangled by a verification of the lineage by studying the pedigree.
Amongst breeders of modern typed Siamese in Germany and neighbouring countries there are only a few breeders that breed with pure Siamese lines, meaning without any Oriental Shorthairs, Balinese or Javanese/Oriental Longhairs in the ancestors. They are called "Pure Siamese", a development which I personally welcome, like our "Old Style Siamese" who are also "Pure Siamese", for example both beauties in the photo below, left Xenon's Mirabella and right Scofflaw Chula.
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Sources:
Siamese Cats Legends and Reality by Martin Clutterbuck
Our Cats and All About Them by Harrison Weir
The Book Of The Cat by Frances Simpson
The Siamese Cat by Phyl Wade
Siamese Cats by Phyllis Lauder
Siamese Cats Past and Present by Greta Hindley