Sinan El Alya

Arabian Essence released Issue #68 of Desert Heritage Magazine today! Have you seen it yet?

Jennifer Ogden, a talented lady with a camera and now, a pen, interviewed Sheikh Meshal Bin Issa Al Thani, of El Alya Stud, Qatar, which is included in the issue. I was reading along, enjoying the interview and the very thoughtful questions and answers, when seemingly out of nowhere, 5 pages into the article, I found the above photo, also taken by Jennifer Ogden. It was an unexpected surprise, as I really like this young stallion, Sinan El Alya, who was the Yearling Gold Champion Colt at the 2023 Katara Peninsula show. See how I circled his generously broad muscled chest! My eyes went there first. He is amazing! Sinan El Alya is living proof that it is possible to breed substance, while not sacrificing for breed attributes like a larger, blacker eye, set lower in a shorter, wider head that is accentuated by the prominence of bone and vein. His look is unmistakable, that is, for a long ago Ansata horse. Namely that of Ansata Abu Sudan, by Ansata Ibn Sudan and out of *Ansata Bint Misuna.

He is a son of another stallion I admire, Sinan Al Rayyan, out of a crucially important mare for El Alya, Noor Al Rayyan (Ashhal Al Rayyan x Ansata Nefer Isis), of whom Sheikh Hamad once said, 

"The Ashhal Al Rayyan daughters inherit his classic aura and have proven to be excellent producers." 

Approximately 80% of the pedigree is representative of the Ansata breeding program but what I found to be most exciting in the pedigree are the genetic connections between siblings, for example, the blood siblings like Ansata Sinan and Ansata Nefer Isis, who influence each side of the pedigree, sire line and matriline, with the same combination of blood. Their dams, Ansata Nefertiti and Ansata Nefara are full sisters to Ansata Hejazi, as all 3 horses are sired by Ansata Halim Shah and out of Ansata Sudarra. The stallion Safir (Salaa El Dine x Aisha) appears twice, while *Jamil, along with Ghazala are maternal siblings of Salaa El Dine, the sire of Ansata Malika. Initially, one may consider Ansata Malika an outcross, however, she traces through JKB Masouda to Moheba, the same Halima matriline as *Ansata Ibn Halima, who is already an important cornerstone in the whole pedigree. If anything, she aids in further connecting the foundational horses of yesterday, with the modern horses, those more recent individuals.

Sinan El Alya, photographed by Jennifer Ogden

In closing, Sheikh Meshal told Jennifer that his program focuses on mare families who are celebrated the world over, for their authentic type. Now that we understand a little more of the beloved mares who are at the core of Sinan El Alya's genetic makeup, (for example, Ansata Sudarra and her dam, Ansata Delilah), we applaud Sheikh Meshal's choices and offer our best wishes for his continued success.

Honey, I Shrunk The Black Stallion!

*El Shaklan (Shaker El Masri x *Estopa), who stood at 16 hands, in a Van Lent photo

"He saw a mighty black horse rear on its hind legs, its forelegs striking out into the air. A white scarf was tied around its eyes. The crowd broke and ran, while lather ran from the horse's body; his mouth was open, his teeth bared. He was a giant of a horse, glistening black." - The Black Stallion, Walter Farley

Lately, watching the video footage from some of the shows, I can't help but notice the size of the handler versus the size of the horse at the end of the lead. In video-after-video, the handlers appear long and lanky, ridiculously towering over the horses. What's happening to our horses? They seem to be shrinking.

In Count Waclaw Rzewuski's 1821 manuscript, Concerning Oriental Horses, he writes,

"It is a great error to believe that desert Arab horses should generally be small. Some of them are, as everywhere, below average size, but this lack of growth is not typical of the Bedouin strain. To the contrary, some of them are found to be large and even very tall."

The version of the book that I am fortunate to own, is translated by James E. Luck and annotated by Andrew K. Steen, who wrote,

"Rzewuski's remarks about the Nejdi Arabian horse make a mockery of William Gifford Palgrave's contrived description which exaggeratedly avowed: Their stature was indeed somewhat low; I do not think any came fully up to fifteen hands; fourteen appears to me about their average..."

James Luck in a separate annotation added, 

"Size was quite important to the Bedouin as long as they used swords and lances. It should never be forgotten that the principal use of horses among the Bedouin was for fighting and it's always easier to fight downhill than uphill...When reading Rzewuski's comments on the size of horses one should keep in mind that for him a medium sized horse seems to have been between 15 and 16 hands."

So much of the written information concerning the Arab horse does appear to be unified in support of a smaller size. For whatever the reason, our community seems to prefer these narratives, which appear to be only part of our breed story. Rzewuski, even more so, becomes a welcomed breath-of-fresh-air, with descriptions that are at the opposite end, that of a much taller horse, than previously believed to exist in the desert. Later in the chapter, from where these excerpts can be found, Count Rzewuski provides examples of the horses he purchased, 

"I even bought, for Her Highness, the Queen of Württemberg, the Bedouin horse Abou-Arkoub, a deep iron-grey, two-year-old, that measured 17 hands; Obeiyan abou Dahman, a bay, age three-years, that stood 16 palms, Seglawi Giedran, a golden sorrel, age four-years, that also stood 16 palms. Among those that I have reserved for myself, was the famous El Messenneh el Wehabi, which I purchased from Abd-el-Aziz, Prince of the Wahhabis, who was 17 hands high." 

Size does matter, as Rzewuski makes it a point to record forever the height of the horses he was personally connected with. Which kind of segways us to another little story, this time, a more personal tale of first impressions and how love makes us all, a little "barn blind". It's a somewhat funny story, that at the time, stung, as it concerned my beloved straight Egyptian mare, who was to me, "the cat's meow". I had already gotten dressed,  tacked up, and was now warming up my mare, just prior to entering the ring for my dressage test, scheduled for 1:20 PM. The steward was looking for us, as I had been given the wrong number and was told by a friend to look for the guy riding the white pony. Wait, what did she say? A white pony? Rosie? She's no pony, she's a horse! I remember reading something Lady Wentworth once said about men not wanting to ride ponies, as they would appear to be underhorsed. In my previous blog, I shared a quote by Dr. Fritz Schilke, concerning marketability and how it insures the survival of a breed. In this matter of height, what is more marketable: a small horse or a big horse? Perhaps, in  marketing Arabian horses as a prospective adult saddle horse, the taller the horse (and the breed to which it belongs) would be more desireable for other like-minded equestrians. After all, are we not breeding for utility under saddle too? 

In Lady Wentworth's career spanning tome, The Authentic Arabian Horse, she says, "There is no standard height, but so long as type is not lost, the bigger, the better." Arlene Magid, in a 1990 article published by The Crabbet Influence magazine, concerning the stallion, Indian Magic (Raktha x Indian Crown), whom Arlene called "The Wentworth Super Horse" wrote that he stood approximately 15.2 hands tall. In her opening sentence, Arlene writes, "Lady Wentworth strove for decades to achieve what she considered to be the ultimate Arabian - a horse of type and extraordinary presence, with superb motion and larger size to appeal to those for whom Arabians were a bit small."  I agree with Arlene, when she credited Indian Magic with shattering the "glass ceiling", which at the time,  thanks to books like Palgraves' Narratives of a Years Journey Through Central and Eastern Arabia: 1862-1863,  created the myth that larger sized Arabian horses were lacking breed-type. 

*Sharem El Sheikh  photo by Judith

Fast-forward to our most recent past and *Sharem El Sheikh, an *El Shaklan son out of the Gharib daughter (and Hadban Enzahi grandaughter) *Samanna, stood 16.1 hands! A striking liver chestnut, he was bred by Dieter & Annelie Kraut of Germany and imported by the late Sigi Siller of Om el Arab in 1985. Like his sire, he was ultra-elegant with a longer neck, a finer throatlatch and a strong topline than one would see in any size horse, big or small. And he passed on, siring a Legion of Honor son, Eternety+, out of the Hal Gazal daughter, Tomboy. 

There are many Arab horses as tall as *El Shaklan, *Sharem El Sheikh, Eternety+ and Indian Magic but unfortunately, this blog format is not big enough to list them all. When I think of tall Arabian horses, these are the individuals who immediately come to my mind. I'm not suggesting that taller horses are better than horses 14 hands and smaller. If that is what you are getting from this blog, then, apologies, because that was never my intent to imply that. Only sharing a personal observation, followed by a personal preference, all for the love of  horse.

Marketability & Type

One of my favorite authors of equine centric material is the American classical riding master, Paul Belasik. In the past, I have enjoyed his books like Riding Towards the Light and The Song of Horses. In the first chapter of his newest philosophically-deep book (I highly recommend), he discusses the strength, success and longevity of the German equine system, as he finds it. I think it goes without saying, that the German system has become the desirous standard for the rest of the horse-loving world to emulate.  Paul writes that while an individual may argue over which nation is producing the best Dressage, the same individual will never argue over which nation is best at the business of Dressage. 

Paul mentions one of the people he admired, early in his career, Dr. Fritz Schilke, who many consider a father figure to not only German Trakehner breeding but beyond, to include German Warmblood breeding too. Maybe someone reading this blog will recognize Dr. Schilke as a champion for the rectangular frame, as one of the conformational components of the German warmblood, despite the sacrifice a longer body means for collection. In the book, Dr. Schilke is quoted as saying, 

"no breed ever died from lack of type; breeds die from lack of marketability." 

Apply the quote to the world of Arabian horses, which has everything to do with type, some even dismiss the horse as a

because of their dislike of the very same breed attributes I and many others cherish. In what form will the breed be saved, if only the most marketable are to survive? Does marketability insure the unique breed value or does it have nothing to do with the horse and more to do with the savvy business acumen of the breeder?

And do we as a community need a system that does for Arabian horses, what the German system did for Dressage? So many years later, the words of Dr. Fritz Schilke remain as profoundly challenging, as when he first said them, ready to inspire a new generation of enthusiasts, all for the love of a horse. 

PRAISEWORTHY

*Hamid, foaled in 1972, was sired by Hamdan II (Hamdan x Folla) and out of *Abeer (Nasralla x Ayda). He was bred by Gustl Eutermoser. One of the most interesting aspects of *Hamid's pedigree is the mare Folla, his paternal granddam, who descended from horses bred by the Tahawy Bedouins, originally from the area of Arabia known as the Hejaz, then, to Egypt in search of better grazing for their livestock. The Tahawys carefully bred their horses, maintaining a closed breeding herd and selectively breeding to insure hardiness, in order to survive traveling long distances in a challenging environment. Folla was one of three Tahawy bred horses who became the foundation for Hamdan Stables. The other two mares were her half sisters: Bint Barakat (Ibn Barakat x Bint Saklawiah) and Futna (Ibn Barakat x Koheilah Halawiyah). Because Folla was registered in the Hamdan Stables stud book, which was a supervised EAO breeding farm, she was accepted by WAHO and falls within the definition of a straight Egyptian Horse, as defined by The Pyramid Society. As a matter of fact, Folla is present in the pedigree of one of the most beautiful Egyptian mares of all time, the world champion Gelgelah Albadeia. Gelgelah's dam, Anhar Albadeia is a daughter of Bint Bint Yosreia, who was sired by Yakout, a son of Bint Folla, Folla's daughter by Hamdan. 

Hamid is an Arabic name possessing a rich history. A variant of the name Mohamed, meaning "praiseworthy", the name is derived from Al-Hamid, one of the names for which Allah is known by. In the short story, Eidgah, a 4-year old orphan named Hamid, sets out with friends for the festival. His friends spend their pocket money on toys and candies but Hamid remembers how his grandmother burns her fingers while cooking. Fighting the temptation to do as his friends did, he spends his money instead on tongs for his grandmother, who is touched by the gift and blesses Hamid for his kindness. When I first saw the photo of Hamid, I was immediately  overwhelmed by his expression of kindness. If I could only jump in the picture and touch this marvelous horse! Learning the story of Eidgah and its 4-year old hero, I have even more appreciation for Hamid's sweet countenance.

Welcome to 2025!

 

2024 Blog Round-Up

Maratez+/ (Nitez x Imarada)

In 2024, I added 30 blogs (compared to last year, that's 37 less blogs) and of this number, 27 were brand new blogs, never before published (76% were published in the first half of 2024). Despite a slower writing pace, I am humbled that in return, you clicked on the blog over 50,000 times, with 12,000 of those page views, coming from America. I am grateful! Thank you also to Hong Kong for visiting 10,000 times, Singapore for 8,000 and Germany, 2,000 visits. You encourage me to keep writing! Including the 30 blogs I added in 2024, there are now 550 total blogs available for you to read (check the Blog Archive, located in the sidebar on the right hand side of the page). Despite a reduced level of new activity this year, I did improve my position in Feedspot's list of top Arabian Horse Blogs, from #7 to #5! I want to believe that the archived library of blog material is responsible for the 2024 growth in readership.

So, what were your favorite blogs this year?  The 10 most popular blogs of 2024, across the world, are: 

1. The Straight Babson Egyptian Arabian Horse 
2. Bedouin Beauty: Jibbah
3. A Case of Mistaken Identity
4. The Tamria Story
5. Ameer El Koloob
6. Portrait of a King
7. There Once was a Stallion Named Antar
8. Think Nabiel...Feel Nabiel
9. Black is the New Black
10. *Farazdac

It's interesting that #3, A Case of Mistaken Identity, is the only new blog to have made the top ten list for 2024! One other blog, Ethereal, although failing to crack the top ten, did place in the top 20 and listed below, are what I have termed, the "Honorable Mentions", the blog posts in the 2nd half of the top 20 which were also popular with you this year:

11. Ethereal
12. *Urfah
13. Thoughts on Aswan
14. HC Abla Raqqas
15. Gulastra, Mesaoud & Egypt
16. Al Adeed Al Shaqab in 1-2-3
17. Bedouin Beauty: The Soulful Eye of the Arab Horse
18. Areej El Koloob
19. Tammenaa MH
20. To Serr, with Love

I share many cherished memories within the pages of this blog. Some of these stories are a little more challenging, that is, to find just the right words to explain the myriad of emotions, while honoring the memory of a horse, for example, Maratez+/, foaled in 1967, bred by the late Everett Shea, Windfall Farm, Pennsylvania and owned for most of his life by the late Sandie Cafritz. He was a son of Nitez (*Witez II x Nafa) bred by Ed Hurlbutt and out of the grey, Imarada (Radamason x Imaja) also bred by Everett Shea. He was extraordinary. I would have to say that his story, now blog #549 was one of my favorite blogs this year.  

Another favorite 2024 blog is  the story of Charaff, a 1948 *Raffles son, out of a *Raffles granddaughter, purchased by Federico Castellanos y Batista, to head the breeding program he founded at his ranch, San Cayetano, in the province of Camaguey, Cuba. Charaff was immensely popular among Cuban breeders and received considerable attention, eventually becoming the Cuban National Champion Stallion in 1956. His escape from Cuba to the United States is a thrilling, on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of story and remains as one of the fun stories I have been fortunate to write.

For many years, the Bint el Bahreyn horses have been considered to be Dahman Shahwan, by strain.  However, further study of the unpublished notes made by Lady Anne Blunt point to a completely different strain, that of Kuhaylah Rabda. As a long time student of the breed, I learned to accept the Dahman strain classification, despite the fact that these horses appeared Kuhaylan. Through mtDNA analysis, will the strain of these horses be revealed to be different from what we previously believed the strain to be? It feels like a case of mistaken identity, another of my favorite blogs this year.

Sometimes, when looking for information on a particular horse, I'm led in a completely different direction, to discover a horse that is not the one that I was looking for! Such was the case with Nile, a 1975 stallion by Mustafa, a Hadban Enzahi son, bred by Marbach Stud. His dam, Nara, also sired by Hadban Enzahi , was bred by Tanya Hawley. David Gillet of Diamond Road Stud in Australia said, "Nile was known for producing beautiful progeny of extreme type and beauty, and he crossed well with a variety of different bloodlines to become one of Australia's all time leading sires."

And there, you have it, a quick highlight of a few of what I believe to be, the more memorable stories of  2024 but don't take my word for it, there are other stories from 2024 and beyond that, 520 more stories, spanning 19 years of story telling, just for you! Maybe you will discover a new favorite?

In closing, I am compelled to express my gratitude once again to you, dear readers, because you are the reason for why this blog even exists. I hope that each blog will continue to inspire you with a desire to learn more about Arabian horses. And if along the way you receive equal helpings of some good old-fashioned awe and wonder, then my part in all of this has gone well, all for the love of an Arabian horse.

Happy New Year 2025!

549

Sandie Cafritz with Maratez+/, photo by the late Johnny Johnston

I'm not sure when I first read And Miles to Go by Linell Smith but the story of *Witez II became a favorite,  which led me to find other books written about Arabian horses like The Black Stallion, by Walter Farley and King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry. As a chubby Cuban kid, not connected to anyone with horses, living within a manufacturing oriented northeast city with absolutely no horses anywhere; reading a horse book was the only way to make horses part of my life. Within the thousands of pages I devoured, horses were as real as I could imagine them to be. When my parents moved the family to a more suburban setting, imagine my surprise, as we passed a sign for an Arabian horse breeder, located in the western-side of town. Too young to drive and too far to ride my bike, I waited for an opportunity to visit the farm. Several years later, the opportunity kind of fell in place. There were 2 stallions on the farm at the time, a gorgeous chestnut named Abu and Maratez+/, who was close-coupled, comprised of circular lines, with a well-sprung barrel, muscled and a powerfully muscled hindquarter. He was smooth of body but it was in the details like his exceptionally fine and dark skin, the prominence of vein and bones, his shorter, wider head with fully black eyes and large, elastic nostrils, balanced with shorter, nicely shaped ears which overwhelmed me, even at a young age. He was extraordinary. His physical presentation was that of a classic Arabian, probably the type of horse most people imagine, when they think of an Arabian horse.  As beautiful  as the chestnut Abu was, Maratez+/ made him look coarse. Little did I realize at the time, the significance of the beautiful grey horse who stood before me, a grandson of *Witez II, the subject of And Miles to Go, the book I liked so much. I'm humbled, still and grateful to the late Alice Nagel of Pleasantview Farm, for the opportunity to meet him.

Maratez+/, foaled in 1967, was bred by the late Everett Shea, Windfall Farm, Pennsylvania. He was a son of  the black, Nitez (*Witez II x Nafa)  bred by Ed Hurlbutt and out of the grey, Imarada (Radamason x Imaja) also bred by Everett Shea. In his matriline, he traces to the desert mare, Nedjme, imported by the Hamidie Society for the World's Fair in Chicago. As a matter of fact, he carries a fair amount of desert breeding in the first 5 generations of his pedigree (parents, grandparents, great-great grandparents), mainly through Kuhailan-Haifi, Burgas and *Mirage. Further back in the pedigree are still more desert horses purchased by the Blunts. Skowronek (Ibrahim x Jaskolka) also appears multiple times in the pedigree through his sons, *Raffles, *Raseyn and daughter, *Rifala. Together with *Witez II, the overall percentage of Polish breeding increases to almost 40%!

Maratez+/ was owned for most of his life by Sandie Cafritz, of Dickerson, Maryland. Sadly, Sandie died this past April 28th. She was 88 years old and is missed by her family and friends. In 1947, at the age of 11, she won the Saddle Seat Equitation Championship at the Chicago International Horse Show. In her obituary, Sandie was said to be,

 "...petite in stature, strong, competitive, tough as nails and could handle a stallion like no other."

Maratez+/, in her hands, was named a National  top ten in English Pleasure twice, 1972 & 1973, in addition to being pinned an East Coast champion in English Pleasure. All of his wins in the show ring helped Maratez+/ to earn his legion of Supreme honor. That is what the symbol "+/" after his name designates. 

Maratez+/ was a proven breeding stallion and in temperament,  was kind and generous.  Most people who knew him personally remarked that he was "a sweetheart", an easy horse to be around. In the late 1970's, in the area known as the mid-Atlantic, particularly the sections of Maryland and Virginia closest to the Potomac river, horses mysteriously became ill and then, died. Eventually, veterinarians coined the name "Potomac Horse Fever" for the illness and Sandie, together with the Morris Animal foundation, worked tirelessly to educate the public and raise funding for a vaccine. In the early 1980's, Maratez+/ was the first horse to receive the newly created vaccination.

Maratez+/ came at a time in my life, when I was just beginning. I really knew nothing but I was able to connect the words I had read, with a living, breathing Arabian Horse. Up until that time, I had never had the opportunity to meet an Arabian horse before. Meeting Maratez+/ in person remains a pivotal moment in my life, as his phenotype made a gigantic impact upon me and set the course for the rest of my life. I knew, in that moment, that he was the type of horse that I would spend the rest of my life chasing. Thirty years after his death, I'm still running to find a horse who inspires me, in the same way that Maratez+/ did, all those years ago. Maybe Sandie's short note back to me is the best way to wrap up my story of Maratez+/. She wrote, 

"I am so happy that you were so impressed with him and to know his heart was the best of all."

548

Ralph Conner, a fellow enthusiast, whose knowledge and experience I respect, recently posted in the Gleannloch Facebook Fan group, a full page stallion ad which appeared in The Pyramid Report, published within the pages of the Arabian Horse Times magazine, circa February 1988.

 A 1975 grey stallion, Habib Al Kol was bred by Gleannloch Farms. A  *Sakr son, out of *Habeeba, he was purchased by Rex & Nancy White, of War-Dal Arabians, Temecula, California, as listed in the ad.  

In The Egyptian Alternative, Volume 2, Philippe Paraskevas wrote of *Sakr,

"If the E.A.O. had kept him and bred him to combine what Sameh faithfully passes on with some of the more concave heads they have there, (either him, or at least, *Ibn Hafiza or El Mareekh), they would have made sense of it all." 

As significant as what Philippe has said; I was inspired to think about Habib Al Kol, within the context of his dam and his maternal grandsire, as both horses had too short of a lifespan, leaving behind a small number of progeny. This fact, in my mind, makes Habib Al Kol all the more desirable as a breeding stallion. It was a chance to capture and build upon the time that was lost for both *Habeeba and El Araby. If Habib Al Kol's beauty or that of his dam and grandsire, were not enough to convince a breeder of his value, his ancestry, as uniquely combined as it was, should have raised awareness, that here, within the blood coursing through his veins was a genetic component that remained excruciatingly special. There were not many horses influenced in the same manner as Habib Al Kol was.

Habib Al Kol (*Sakr x * Habeeba) as photographed by Rob Hess

Habib Al Kol's dam,  *Habeebaa, was a 1969 mare, sired by El Araby (*Morafic x Hafiza) and out of *Bint Hanaa (El Sareei x Hanaa).  *Habeeba's maternal great granddam is a mare named Hind. This is not the same Hind (Ibn Rabdan x Bint Rustem) that we find in the pedigree of the Egyptian Hadban strain horses. Hind, like the mare, El Kahila, was gifted by King Ibn Sa'ud to King Farouk of Egypt. Hind was three years old at the time.  Three years later, she produced Hanaa by El Belbesi, a son of the Dahman Shahwan stallion, El Zafir (Awad x Bint Dalal) who traces in his tail female line to the mare, Bint el Bahreyn. What is really interesting is the low percentage of the Blunt desert horses, less than 4%, through horses like Azrek, Hadban, Queen of Sheba and Dajania. When combined with El Araby, who also carried a low percentage of the Blunt desert horses (El Araby's dam, Hafiza, carried no Blunt desert blood), *Habeeba's pedigree offered breeders a very unique combination of source blood, different from many of the horses who were also influenced by Crabbet (Blunt) breeding at that time. It is hard to believe that this opportunity once existed, easily found and now, is no more. How quickly doors open and slam shut in the world of Egyptian breeding!

Like her dam, granddams (Hanaa & Hafiza) and great-granddams (Zareefa & Mahfouza) *Habeeba was bay in colour. *Habeeba was one of only five foals sired by El Araby, also bay in color, whose beauty offered no additional protection and he died tragically in Egypt. *Habeebaa, like her bay sire, did not live a very long life, she died at age nine. She produced a limited number of foals, starting with Gemaal in 1973 and finishing up in 1978 with AK Jaliya. 

El Araby, a 1962 *Morafic son out of Hafiza, inspired all who saw him with his incredible scope and outrageous beauty. Judith Forbis said of him, 

"Tall, elegant, long-necked, and very extreme of head, he had naturally brilliant park-horse action and carried himself as a mount of kings.

El Araby was so admired, that many breeders, using the blood of *Ibn Hafiza, in combination with *Morafic's influence, confidently set out to recreate him, without success. A lot of beautiful horses resulted but none quite like El Araby.

I was exchanging emails with a friend, also a fan of Habib Al Kol, who pointed me to the Gleannloch Farms video on YouTube, posted by Jaliisah. Within the video, somewhere past 31 minutes, I found footage of Habib Al Kol at liberty and using the clipping tool available on You Tube, I was able to isolate his footage, approximately 45 seconds long--> Habib Al Kol

Habib Al Kol (*Sakr x * Habeeba) as photographed by Rhita McNair

"Tall", "elegant" and "long-necked" are the words that Judith Forbis chose to describe El Araby. As I watched the video footage of Habib Al Kol, the words Judi used to describe his maternal grandsire, also spoke the truth about Habib Al Kol! Now that he is long gone, as are many of the people who were part of these bloodlines, I'm not sure I understand why there are so few horses, in straight Egyptian form, tracing back to Habib Al Kol. If it is a matter of personal preference, so be it but it would have been great to have a choice, for my preference, here in what is now, their future.