Cats in History @felinesofhistory - Tumblr Blog

This gilt bronze-mounted porcelain cat was made in Qianlong, China and formerly owned by Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV. Upon her death, the cat was inherited by her brother who sold it to wealthy tax collector Pierre-Louis-Paul Randon de Boisset (who supposedly added the stool). It was then sold to Jean-Baptiste-Pierre Le Brun, husband of painter Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun. After Le Brun's death, it was shoved away and forgotten until its rediscovery in 2017.

It is now housed at the Getty Museum.

#cat #cat history #cats in history #cats in art #chinese art #french art #french history #chinese history #Getty museum

On March 11, 889 CE, 22-year-old Emperor Uda wrote of his cat:

“On the 6th Day of the 2nd Month of the First Year of the Kampo era. Taking a moment of my free time, I wish to express my joy of the cat. It arrived by boat as a gift to the late Emperor, received from the hands of Minamoto no Kuwashi.

The color of the fur is peerless. None could find the words to describe it, although one said it was reminiscent of the deepest ink. It has an air about it, similar to Kanno. Its length is 5 sun, and its height is 6 sun. I affixed a bow about its neck, but it did not remain for long.

In rebellion, it narrows its eyes and extends its needles. It shows its back.

When it lies down, it curls in a circle like a coin. You cannot see its feet. It’s as if it were circular Bi disk. When it stands, its cry expresses profound loneliness, like a black dragon floating above the clouds.

By nature, it likes to stalk birds. It lowers its head and works its tail. It can extend its spine to raise its height by at least 2 sun. Its color allows it to disappear at night. I am convinced it is superior to all other cats.”

#japanese history #cats in history #cat history #cat #cats in art #cats #enoki toshiyuki #emperor uda

redlipstickresurrected

Cats being instructed in the Art of Mouse Catching by an Owl - Lombard School, c. 1700, Paintings: Oil on Canvas, within a painted Lunette

nemfrog

Cavorting cats. Japanese fairy tale series: Schippeitaro. 1885-89.

slam-ancient

Cat, Egyptian, 664–332 BC, Saint Louis Art Museum: Ancient Art

https://www.slam.org/collection/objects/33995/

jeannepompadour

"The third Princess and a cat", from the "New Herbs I" (Wakana I). Attributed to Matsuno Chikanobu, 18th century

winedarkarchive-deactivated2023

CATS IN ART / sketches from life by shen zhou (ca. 1427–1509) / relaxation (al istirkha’) by inji efflatoun (c. 1950s) / the cat talked by midori yamada (2011) / cats on a red cloth by franz marc (c. 1909–10) / sarcophagus of prince thutmose’s cat (ca. 1400 BCE) / contentment by henriette ronner-knip (1900) / sleeping cat by claude monet (1896) / mademoiselle julie manet with cat by auguste renoir (1887) / tomb of may (ca. 1500 BCE)

psikonauti

Rosa Bonheur (French 1822- 1899) Wild Cat

mossyredwood

Cat Paper Dolls

pwlanier

Fine folk art portrait of 3 cats. American, circa 1875. Oil on canvas in the original frame.

New Haven Auctions

erikkwakkel

Cat paws in medieval book - again

This great image was brought to my attention by the archivist at Balliol College, Oxford (here is the tweet). In a similar case, an image I tweeted some time ago showed a trail of inky cat paws, which was sent to me by @EmirOFilipovic (here is that tweet). The Balliol manuscript again provides evidence of cats walking over books, in this case in a manuscript from the 15th-century. It’s lovely to see that cats walking over books is a universal practice, with currently two medieval cases identified. In the image above the cat appears to merely have had dirt on his feet, not ink. It’s hard to say when this intrusion happened, but it will likely have been before modern times. Cats are, after all, refused entry to library reading rooms.

Pic: Oxford, Balliol College, MS 192 (England, 15th century).

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Head of a Cat with Amber Eyes

Bronze head of a cat represents goddess Bastet or Bast with inlaid amber eyes and a golden scarab on its forehead, it was part of a cat-shaped sarcophagus for a cat mummy, as a sacrifice to the goddess Bastet.

Late Period, 26th Dynasty, ca. 600 BC. Now in the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen.

theancientwayoflife

~ Feline Mortar and Pestle.

Date: 700-1 B.C.

Place of origin: Perú, North Highlands, Pacopampa(?)

Culture: Chavín style

Medium: Stone, pigment

egypt-museum-deactivated2021071

Stele dedicated to divine cats of Ra and Atum

Found at Deir el-Medina (limestone), in the lower register depicting an anonymous couple worshiping “The Cat of the god Ra", and “The Great Cat, the peaceful one, in his perfect name of Atum” - two aspects of the same solar divinity, both shown facing each other in the upper register. New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty, ca. 1292-1189 BC. Now in the Ashmolean Museum.