Proof Tiddles is from Ancient Egypt

IT HAS has long been believed that cats were domesticated by the Ancient Egyptians.

Now, in the largest genetic study of ancient cats, scientists have proved that our modern pets share DNA with those living at the time of the Pharaohs.

They believe modern pets still have Ancient Egyptian DNA because these cats were the most tame and affectionate towards humans.

Lead author Dr Claudio Ottoni, from the University of Leuven in Belgium, said: ‘Cats and humans first came into contact 10,000 years ago, when cats were attracted to rodents, which were attracted to the grain stored by early farming communities.

‘They were first seen as useful for pest control, then as companion animals. Our genetic research proves that modern cats come from the Near East [Israel, Lebanon, Jordan and South-East Turkey] and Egypt, but that Egyptian cats became more popular, probably because of traits which humans found attractive. I absolutely believe that Egyptian cats would jump up on people’s laps and curl up, just as they do today.’

The scientists extracted DNA from bones, teeth, teeth, skin and hair from more than 200 cats found at archaeological sites in the Near East, Africa and Europe dating back between 100 and 9,000 years. They believe all modern domestic cats are related to the African wildcat.

The study, published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, found that cats arrived in Europe in two waves. The first was 6,000 years ago, from the Near East. But the DNA analysis shows that Egyptian cats, which were more popular, spread through Europe a few thousand years later during the Roman era.