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Birman
Temperament:
*Friendly and Reserved
*Social
*Intelligent
*Quiet
*Faithful
"A Birman is often thoughtful and quiet, its face enigmatic in
reflection."
Usually very polite and civilized, they are nonetheless very sociable cats and
may get depressed if left alone. They are strongly attached to their owners-
much like the legendary Sinh so many centuries ago.
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| Head: Broad
and rounded; full cheeks; "Roman" nose |
| Eyes: Rounded,
wide set, slightly slanted; deep blue |
| Ears: Medium
size; round tipped, set almost on the side of the head |
| Body: Long
and strongly built |
| Coat: Longish
silky fur, slight curl on the belly; does not mat |
| Tail: Medium
length, bushy |
| Patterns: Seal
point, chocolate point, blue point, lilac point |
Breed History: The
Birman is called the "sacred cat of Burma"- and is a breed with a
mysterious, romantic background.
According to legend, at the temple of Lao-Tsun in Indochina lived Mun Ha, an
old monk who devoted his life to Tsun-Kyan-Kse, the Goddess of Migrating
Souls. Mun Ha had another passion in his life- Sinh, his beautiful white cat
with golden eyes. One day, the temple was attacked by raiders. A terrified Mun
Ha collapsed from shock by the statue of the Goddess. As he lay dying, Sinh
leapt on his master, facing the statue. And the Goddess caused the soul of the
priest to enter the cat. The cat's eyes turned the sapphire-blue of the
Goddess' eyes and its coat the golden color of her hair. The cat's extremities
turned the color of the earth- but where the cat's paws had touched the monk,
the fur remained white. Seeing this miracle, the other monks successfully
fought off the invaders. From that point on, the Birman was considered the
holiest of cats.
Whether you accept this colorful legend or
not, no one is at all sure how the cats ultimately arrived in the west. There
are stories of a British Major being given a pair of the cats by a disloyal
Burmese priest at the turn of the century. Other stories claim some rich
Americans bought some of the cats and sent them to France for breeding. And
indeed, France seems to be the origin of the breed as we know it- the Birman
was first recognized as a pedigree in France in 1925.
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