New research has revealed significant insights into the domestication of cats, indicating that the practice may have originated in ancient Egypt rather than earlier farming communities. Traditionally, it was believed that wildcats began living near human settlements over 9,000 years ago, drawn by the availability of rodents around grain stores. However, this model is now under re-evaluation.
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Dr. Sean Doherty, an archaeological scientist at the University of Exeter and lead author of the first study, expressed doubts about the established narrative. He stated that their findings suggest cat domestication began in Egypt around the first to second millennium BC. The researchers employed zooarchaeological analysis, genetics, and radiocarbon dating to reassess cat remains from sites across Europe and North Africa. They found that bones from a 9,500-year-old village in Cyprus were more closely aligned with those of wildcats than previously believed.
Doherty noted that previous misdating could be attributed to the small size of cat bones, which may have shifted between soil layers over centuries. Their radiocarbon dating confirmed that some remains were more recent than earlier estimates suggested, shifting the timeline for domestication.
While controlling rodents likely contributed to the relationship between cats and humans, the research points to a religious significance as well. In ancient Egypt, cats were revered as sacred to the goddess Bastet, leading to mass breeding for sacrificial purposes. Doherty highlighted that millions of mummified cats have been discovered at temples dedicated to Bastet, and during the Victorian era, many were shipped to Britain for use as fertiliser.
These practices may have led to the selection of traits that facilitated handling and nurturing of domestic cats. A second genomic study, involving 87 ancient and modern cat genomes, found no evidence that domestic cats arrived in Europe alongside Neolithic farmers, suggesting they made their way from North Africa within the last 2,000 years.
Doherty concluded that the bond between humans and cats is not shaped by a longstanding coexistence, unlike the relationship with dogs. Both studies are currently preprints and pending formal peer review.