Persia into Italy in 1620 by Pietro della Valle, and from Angora , Turkey, into France by Nicholas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc at around the same time. The Khorasan cats were grey coated while those from Angora were white. From France, they soon reached Britain. Longhaired cats were also imported to Europe from Afghanistan, Burma, China and Russia. Interbreeding of the various types was common, especially between Angoras and Persians.
The exact origins of the cats that have come to be known as Persian may forever remain muddled, but most authorities concur that longhaired cats were brought into Europe from points East. Europeans and Americans began to breed these imported longhaired cats together, selecting the traits that they found most desirable, to meet the growing demand. Cat clubs were formed to record lineages of these pets, and the natural outcome was that in July of 1871 the world’s first cat show was held in England at the Crystal Palace in London.