Losos summarized genetic research that traces domestic cats back to, most likely, North African wild cats, between 35,000 and 10,000 years ago. This meshes with the beginnings of agriculture, and Losos outlined the common theory that wild cats were drawn to the rodents that fed on grain stores — and that humans welcomed these predators in.

“People would see the advantage of having these cats around and would put out a bowl of milk or let them into the hut where it was warm and dry,” he said. “The next thing you know, you have the domestic cat.”

Their dispersal around the world (to every continent except Antarctica) was aided by their new human friends, including, it seems, Vikings. DNA sequencing of a cat found at a burial site in the Viking village of Ralswiek, now in Northern Germany, has revealed a striking similarity to that of Egyptian cats.

Presumably, Vikings picked up and helped disseminate these domestic creatures as they sailed around Europe, Iceland, and possibly North America, while travelers along the sea routes to India and overland along the Silk Road to China did the same.