LUCKYSTARS

An ancient American article that attracted attention from as far away as New Zealand and Holland, and drew reader
response for years after its first publication in the September/October, 2002 issue described a New England feline
with a
pre-Columbian pedigree. Sally, the Maine Coon in question who posed for the original article, has since moved on to
Valhalla, but her memory and the impact of her kind on the prehistory of ur continent lives on.

DNA research is not only revolutionizing police work, but uncovering otherwise unknown historical information with
no less
revolutionizing consequences for our understanding of the past. A case in point is the unexpected solution of an old
controversy surrounding the Maine Coon Cat. The breed has long perplexed biologists, because they were unable to
explain its unique appearance or trace its origins. The animal derived its modern identity from the state in which it is
primarily found, although smaller populations appear in the Atlantic coastal regions of New Brunswick and Nova
Scotia.

Somewhat larger than the average house cat, specimens of 10 or more pounds are common. But the beast is best
known
for its unusual hind-quarters, which resemble those of a raccoon; hence, its name. Moreover, its bushy tail, brown
and
white striped markings, together with an occasional tendency to wash its food, helped to promote its reputation as the
result of unions between cats and raccoons. But such crossings are biologically impossible, because raccoons are
not
felines, but canines related to members of the dog family.

In an attempt to trace the genetic origins of the singular Maine Coon Cat, scientists subjected it to DNA testing last year
for the first time. The results were as clear as they were surprising: The Maine Coon is the direct descendant of an
unknown, domestic breed that went extinct within the last few centuries and the skaugkatt, or "Norwegian Forest
Cat,"
brought to our continent from Scandinavia 1,000 years ago. AS the Website for the Cat Fanciers' Association
explains,
"These are the cats that explored the world with the Vikings, protecting the grain stores on land and sea, and are
believed
to have left their progeny on the shores of North America, as a legacy to the future. Is their Norse name accurate?
Yes,
the skaugkatt, meaning 'forest cat,' really did come out of the Scandinavian forests in the last 4,000 years."

Because the large animals are determined hunters, they were invariably taken aboard Viking expeditions to keep the
long-ships free of vermin. When the Medieval Scandinavians landed along North American coasts, some of the
"wegies,"
as they are commonly nicknamed in Britain and the United States, jumped overboard, and mated with that unknown
domestic breed that no longer exists. The living descendants of those early days in Viking America are today's Maine
Coon Cats. Their majority presence in the state that gave them its name suggests that the Norse did more than briefly
establish a settlement at L'Ans aux Meadows, as mainstream scholars insist, but went on to colonize other parts of
the
Eastern Seaboard. Concentration of the Maine Coon's population in that state implies that the Vikings elusive Vinland
was
in Maine after all.

The Main Coon's descent from Norway's Forest Cat is unmistakable. The skaugkatt is somewhat larger; its fur texture
is
not quite as silky; the head shape is slightly different; tufts, not seen on its American counterpart, sprout from the tips
of
its ears, and, most noticeably, its hind legs are straighter. But physical and behavioral comparisons leave no doubt
that it
is the ancestor of the Maine Coon Cat, as confirmed by DNA research. In a happy coincidence, the skaugkatt was
designated Norway's official cat by King Olaf late in the last century, about the same time the Maine Coon was named
the
official cat of the Pine Tree State. Connections between the two are valid evidence for Medieval Norse in American,
centuries before Columbus. Anyone who wants to meet a direct descendant of the first Viking visitors to our
continent
need only make the acquaintance of a Maine Coon Cat.

NEVER, under ANY circumstances, lie, cheat or steal!

menu

maine coon history