Pekin Bantam

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title: "Pekin Bantam" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["bantam-chicken-breeds", "chicken-breeds", "chicken-breeds-originating-in-china"] description: "British breed of bantam chicken" topic_path: "geography/china" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pekin_Bantam" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary British breed of bantam chicken ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox poultry breed"]

Field	Value
name	Pekin Bantam
image	Paulx - Bantam rooster (1).jpg
image_caption	A Pekin cock
status
country	United Kingdom
use	ornamental
apa	no
ee	as equivalent of bantam Cochin
pcgb	true bantam
maleweight	680 g
femaleweight	570 g
eggcolour	white or cream
comb	single
type	Chicken
latin	Gallus gallus domesticus
::

| name = Pekin Bantam | image = Paulx - Bantam rooster (1).jpg | image_size = | alt = | image_caption = A Pekin cock | status = | altname = | country = United Kingdom | distribution = | standard = | use = ornamental | apa = no | aba = | ee = as equivalent of bantam Cochin | pcgb = true bantam | weight = | maleweight = 680 g | femaleweight = 570 g | skincolour = | eggcolour = white or cream | comb = single | note = | type = Chicken | latin = Gallus gallus domesticus

The Pekin Bantam is a British breed of bantam chicken. It derives from birds brought to Europe from China in the nineteenth century, and is named for the city of Peking where it was believed to have originated. It is a true bantam, with no corresponding large fowl. It is recognised only in the United Kingdom, where the Cochin has no recognised bantam version; like the Cochin, it has heavy feathering to the legs and feet. The Entente Européenne treats the Pekin Bantam as equivalent to the bantam Cochin.

History

The first Pekins are alleged to have been looted from the private collection of the Emperor of China at Peking (now known as Beijing) by British soldiers towards the end of the Second Opium War around 1860. However, some sources suggest that a consignment of birds from China around 1835 were given to Queen Victoria, assuming the name of 'Shanghais' and that these birds were bred with further imports and were developed into the breed we know today as Pekins. The Pekins first brought to the United Kingdom are said to have been buff in colour, with blacks and cuckoos arriving later on. They are known in the United States and Canada as Cochin Bantams.

Characteristics

The Pekin is a true bantam, a bantam chicken with no large fowl counterpart. It is recognised only in the United Kingdom, where the Cochin has no recognised bantam version; in other European countries it is treated as the bantam of the Cochin, to which it is not closely related. Twelve colour varieties are recognised: barred, birchen, black, blue, buff, Columbian, cuckoo, lavender, mottled, partridge, silver partridge and white.

Gallery

File:Pekin bantam female.JPG|A hen File:Pekinsandsebright (cropped).jpg|Buff pullet and white cockerel File:Head of chicken (DSCF6317) (cropped).jpg|Head of a cock File:Pekin Bantom Dust Bathing.jpg|Face of a pullet

References

References

1. "The Pekin Bantam Club of Great Britain".
2. Bassom, Frances. (2009). "Chicken breeds & care : a color directory of the most popular breeds and their care". Firefly Books.
3. 9781119509141.
4. [https://web.archive.org/web/20171104135004/http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/PDF%20Forms/APA%20Recognized%20Breeds%20and%20Varieties%20Sept2012.pdf APA Recognized Breeds and Varieties: As of January 1, 2012]. American Poultry Association. Archived 4 November 2017.
5. Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20200623201209/http://www.fao.org/3/a1250e/annexes/List%20of%20breeds%20documented%20in%20the%20Global%20Databank%20for%20Animal%20Genetic%20Resources/List_breeds.pdf List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources], annex to: [https://web.archive.org/web/20170110125634/http://www.fao.org/3/a-a1250e.pdf ''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture'']. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{isbn. 9789251057629. Archived 23 June 2020.
6. [https://dadis-breed-datasheet-ws.firebaseapp.com/?country=GBR&specie=Chicken&breed=Pekin&external=1&lang=en Breed data sheet: Pekin / United Kingdom (Chicken)]. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed August 2025.
7. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130616062803/http://www.entente-ee.com/deutsch/sparten/gefluegel/dateien/2013/Verzeichnis%20R%20F%2028042013.xls Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013)]. Entente Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.
8. [https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143235/http://www.poultryclub.org/img/Breed%20Classification.pdf Breed Classification]. Poultry Club of Great Britain. Archived 12 June 2018.
9. 9781405156424.

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