A Brief History of The Papillon

and reasons for elements of its AKC standard ©
by
Harold Gell*

In the 15th and early 16th centuries, a small dog gained favor in Italy and spread throughout Europe. It was known as the Italian Toy Spaniel and is the progenitor of today's Papillon. This history is documented by a litany of paintings by great masters which culminates in the earliest photographs. For instance, at the close of the 15th century, Italian Master Painter Palma Vecchio included Italian Toy Spaniels in many of his works. A section of one such painting presented below illustrates an Italian Toy Spaniel which appears identical to a modern Papillon of the Phalene variety.

Palma Vecchio
Pitti Gallery
This similarity continues in many of Titian's works such as the Italian Toy Spaniel at the feet of the nude in "Venus of Urbano" which was painted in 1538.

Venus of Urbano
Titian, 1538
In the middle of the 17th century the Italian Toy Spaniel was still around and still looking like a modern Papillon. Henriett of Orleans was their champion. This is demonstrated by the many paintings of her with her favorite dogs, such as the 1660 portrait by Mignard.

Henrietta of Orleans
Mignard, 1660

Lagrilliere`s paintings, including the family portrait rendered around 1680, illustrate that the Italian Toy Spaniel was a favorite of Louis XIV`s children.

Louis XIV, and Family
Largilliere, 1680
About this time the name "Papillon" or "Butterfly Spaniel" became synonymous with the Italian Toy Spaniel. By the end of the 19th century the name became official with breeders such as Mme. Delville, and the stage was set for the development of the modern erect ear variety of Papillons. In Belgium, Papillons such as Mme. Delville`s Mignonne, captured by the photograph reproduced below, were infused with Melitæus blood lines (i.e., Toy Spitz aka Pomeranian) to develop the erect ear variety depicted in the early photograph of Mme. Delville`s Cybille, also reproduced below.

MMe. Delville's Mignonne MMe. Delville's Cybille

The dates of these photos are not known, but they appeared in an encyclopedia published in 1903. Placing the dogs near the end of the 19th century or earlier. Mignonne's type reportedly carried to "Carlo", a known example of the breed prior to 1910.

In 1912 , Mrs. DeForest Danielson whelped the first U.S. champion, Ch Jou Jou. The sir, Gighi, was of Italian origin and acquired in 1908. The bitch, a 2nd Mignonne, was acquired in France in 1911. The 1st Mignonne, Mme. Delville's, would have been to old to breed.

In 1923, the papillon, still predominantly of the Phalene variety, invaded England. They were imported by Mrs. Gordon Gratrix and Mrs. M. B. Cooper of Eden Lodge, Hornsea, E. Yorks. Breeders who joined to produce the first Engish Champion, Ch. Gamin De Flandere, in 1925 from second generation imported Belgium stock and an offspring of the 1st U.S. champion, Jou Jou.

The cross breeding of drop-ear Papillons with Pomeranians created the erect ear variety of the butterfly dog. This was the desired result, and to the delight of enthusiasts, the erect ear proved to be dominant. The genetic experiment had its pitfalls however, such as the straight Spitz rear so obvious in the tintype. It also introduced the Pomeranian`s undercoat, solid colors, liver or self-color pigmentation, and small, high set ears. Desirable characteristics for Pomeranians but undesirable for Papillons. To overcome these characteristics, the earliest European and English standards, precursors of our current standard, incorporated various prohibitions that are present to this day in the AKC approved standard for the breed. They are generally presented as "faults" and "disqualifications". The prohibitions were, and still are, couched in such severe terms to protect the breed. They comprise most of the parts of the official standard which characterize the breed and must be considered by anyone judging the breed.

The specific areas of the standard are, in order of occurrence and not necessarily importance, 1) "Faults - Ears small", 2) "Faults - Ears set to high", 3) "fault .. . . severely penalized – Nose not black", 4) "There is no undercoat", 5) "faults . . . . severely penalized - Color other than white not covering both ears, front and back, or not extending from the ears over both eyes"and of major significance, 6) "DISQUALIFICATIONS - An all white dog or a dog with no white" (i.e., any solid color or black and tan). All features commonly found in Pomeranians.

*Acknowledgement is due, and gladly made to the Hon. Mrs. Neville Lytton who`s monumental work in researching the origins of toy dogs contributed significantly to and provided the impetus for this article. Her research began at the close of the 19th century and culminated in 1911 with the publication of "Toy Dogs and Their Ancestors".