Breed of longhaired cat, sometimes called the sacred cat of Burma. The distinctive, predominately white birman traces its origins to pre-Buddhist times. According to legend, 100 all-white sacred cats lived in a temple honouring a blue-eyed, golden goddess named Tsun-Kyan-Kse, who watched over souls of the dead as they changed to a higher form. The temple was attacked one night and a priest, who prayed nightly to a statue of the goddess, was mortally wounded. One of the sacred cats, Sinh, watched over the dying priest, placing his paws on the priest’s body while facing the statue of the goddess. The cat’s eyes turned blue, his coat took on a golden sheen, and his face, legs, and tail turned a velvety brown to reflect the beauty of the goddess. Only the cat’s feet remained white as a sign of the purity of the slain priest’s soul. By morning, all the cats in the temple had taken on this colouring—now the standard for birmans.

 

 

The birman has a stocky body, with a heavy bone structure that adds to its sturdy, imposing appearance. The broad head is round, with full cheeks and prominent cheekbones. A heavy collar of fur, called a ruff, encircles the neck. Large, round blue eyes are set wide apart and at a slight angle. The nose is of medium length and width, and the wide-set, medium-size ears are slightly rounded. The medium-length tail has a plume of long silky fur.

 

 

The pure white feet and colorpoints (characteristic large spots of darker fur on the face, ears, legs, and tail, contrasting with a lighter body coloring) of a birman distinguish the breed. The glovelike colour pattern on the front paws extends in an even line across each paw up to the second or third joint, where the paw bends when the cat stands. The gloves on the back legs end slightly higher. A white lace pattern, shaped like an inverted V, extends up the back of the legs. The back and sides of the long fur coat have a faint golden tint, while the colourpoints may be one of several contrasting colors. All cat associations recognize the birman with seal, blue, chocolate, or lilac colourpoints; other colours exist but are not allowed in competition.

 

 

By 1925, birmans were well established in France, and had been introduced in Great Britain and the United States. However, only in the late 1960s did British and American cat associations recognize the birman.