The story, repeated by sources all the way up to the National Park Service, goes like this. During Martin van Buren’s presidency, he received a gift from the Sultan of Oman. The ship Sultana had docked in New York, stocked with pearls, a golden sword, fine Arabian horses—and two tiger cubs. Van Buren was delighted with the present and immediately brought the tigers to the White House.
His fun was spoiled when Congress got wind of the animals, ordering the President to get rid of them at once. By accepting the Sultan’s gift, Van Buren had violated the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which prevented the Chief Executive from receiving foreign gifts, no matter how fuzzy or cuddly they were. After a protracted argument with Congress, Van Buren eventually had to admit defeat, and gave the tiger cubs up to a zoo.
The story is repeated in online articles and listicles about presidential pets. A fun fact about Van Buren’s brief possession of pet tiger cubs even made it onto Snapple bottle caps. The only problem is that the whole thing is probably made up—at least the bit about the tigers.
How did we end up saddling President Van Buren with two tiger cubs he never owned? The likely answer probably comes from two separate gift-giving incidents during his presidency: one with horses, and another with lions.
In December of 1839, the Sultan of Omar and Muscat, Said bin Sultan, wrote President Van Buren notifying him that he was sending a ship loaded with tokens of friendship for his new ally (the Omani empire had recently helped an American vessel that had run aground near Muscat, resulting in expanded diplomatic relations). These included 150 pearls, a carpet, shawls, a “gold-mounted sword” and two Arab Nijd horses.
Van Buren wrote back saying that he appreciated the gesture but that the Constitution prevented him from receiving the gifts. By “declining your valuable gift, I do but perform a paramount duty to my country, and that my sense of the kindness which prompted the offer is not thereby… abated”.
Unfortunately, it was too late for the President to do anything. The ship, the Sultana, arrived in New York with all the luxurious presents the Sultan had promised. The captain of the ship wrote that he was duty-bound to deliver them: “I can now carry out the Imaum’s intentions only by requestion that they may be considered as intended for the Government of the United States, and that you will… take such measures for the acceptance of them as you may deem proper.” The State Department had little choice but to accept, and led the fine Arabian horses off the ship, unloading pearls and rosewater behind them.