General Appearance: The Bokhara is a large full-bodied exhibition pigeon. In shape and station it is low-standing, broad, short-necked, and close to the ground. Its station is one which approaches a position which is parallel to the ground. It is long, low, and broad. Its legs are widely set and short. It’s feathering is profuse, soft, long, wide and strong quilled. In all aspects it alludes to massive size and dense feathering.

Rose: The rose is a crown of feathers emanating from a point slightly forward of the center of the skull and lying in all directions. The longest feathers of the rose are as nearly as possible of equal length forming a perfect circle which covers the eyes and beak. The rose is flat and densely feathered. The larger, rounder, flatter and more densely feathered the rose is the more valued it shall be.

Shell: The shell is a greatly exaggerated crest of feathers which circumscribes the rose extending as widely as possible around the head and lying below the ears, The shell wraps around the entire head to the throat immediately beneath the beak, nearly meeting there but falling just short of touching to form a complete circle. The shell is set high, standing firmly and is curved in such a manner so that the inside perimeter forms a cup of feathers that exhibits the appearance that a marble could be rolled within it in a tract that circumscribes the head. The plane expressed by the rose is even with the topmost edge of the shell feathering. The longer feathered, wider, more densely feathered, well cupped and properly set the shell, the more valued it shall be.

Neck and Mane: The neck is short, slightly arched rearward presenting the plane of the rose in a position that is approximately 30° to the ground. The neck is extremely broad and profusely feathered in every aspect exhibiting no breaks when viewed from any angle. There are no indented lines and no allusion either to thinness or to a lengthy neck. The feathering of the neck and mane is functionally a continuation of the shell feathering and the wider, more lengthy and densely feathered and more continuous the feathering of the neck and mane is, the more valued it shall be.

Body: The body is squat, long, carried nearly horizontally with very wide shoulders, a prominent full breast, and stout thick wings all of which accentuate the appearance of a massive size. The entire body presents a blunt wedge shape when viewed from above, being very broad at the shoulders and flowing with decreasing width as it approaches the tail. The breast feathering covers the wing butts so they are not exposed and underbody feathers cover the knee joints so the legs are not visible. The body frontal is wide, round, densely feathered, massive, and flowing continuously to the rear body which is long, wide, low, and both loosely and densely feathered. The keel is prominent and very deep accentuating the full round massive body frontal. The larger, wider, longer, and more densely feathered the body, the more valued it shall be.

Wings: The wings are strong, thick, wide, and long. The tips of the flights reach the end of the tail. The flights are carried above and rest lightly upon the tail.

Tail: The tail is long and spread lightly at the end. The tail in conjunction with the wings adds length, width, and massiveness to the Bokhara.

Boots: The boots are extremely long exhibiting great width and massiveness. They exhibit profusion and roundness and continuity beginning in growth with shorter feathers frontally and showing greater feather length as they fill rearward. The rearmost feathers of the boots extend continuously to the hock feather without a break in their perimeter. The boots are multilateral and as dense as possible. The longer, wider, rounder and more densely feathered the boots, the more valued they shall be.

Hocks: The hocks are functionally a continuation of the boot feathering. They are long, full, and densely feathered extending over the rear feathers of the boots.

Beak: The beak is medium in length and wide although it is not exposed. It’s color correlates to feather color, being flesh colored in whites and baldheaded and all other birds with predominately white head feathering. Black Bokharas have a dark black beak and all other colored birds have correlated colored beaks.

Eyes: The eyes are pearl in self's, baldheaded, and mottles. The eyes are bull in whites.

Color and Markings: The color is deep, even, dark, and free from all slating, bleaching , or mismarking, e.g. blacks are extremely dark with no sootiness, slating or bleaching. The neck and breast exhibits a purple and green beetle sheen. No white or gray is exhibited in the hocks, vent feathering or boots.

In white Bokharas no colored feathers are seen and the rump and tail are free from mismarking.

Mottles and Splashes are designated either light or dark depending on whether color or white predominates (i.e. dark black mottle; light red splash).

A mottle Bokhara is self colored with white flecking on the head, neck, and breast.

There is no AOC Class so that a mismarked bird competes in its correct class.

A baldheaded Bokhara has a white rose, white boots, 10 X 10 white flights and a white bib which extends down the breast two inches. The remainder of the baldhead is self colored.

A splash is a piebald Bokhara with an abstract unspecified pattern of color and white.

Voice: In English speaking countries the voice is not a factor in judging Bokharas primarily because there is no generally known method of consistently inducing a bird to trumpet. However this characteristic is highly desirable. The voice of the Bokhara is low pitched, melodic, and of long duration, the longer, the more desirable. * voice sample

Faults: The following are minor faults: Bull or cracked eyes in birds other than whites; mismarking, particularly colored rumps in whites, white boot feathering in selfs and white rumps in baldheads; other poor quality color. The following are serious faults: A crooked keel; a "rolled" toe or "bumblefoot"; asymmetry of body or a one sided body weakness.

* Front view, side view, allotted points

* Front view, side view, allotted points