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It is generally accepted that cats were first domesticated in ancient Egypt, at the latest by the 20th to 19th century B.C. However, several finds from Cyprus suggest that the origins of cat taming were earlier. A cat mandible at the early Neolithic site of Khirokitia, Cyprus, and, more recently, from several other sites, show that cats were present on the island starting from ∼9500 years ago. Researchers have now found a cat buried in association with a human from the site of Shillourokambos, demonstrating that a close relation had developed by ∼9500 years ago.