Profile of a World Champion

Khidar is an Ansata Sinan son, out of a mare named Elizja, a Belgian National Champion Mare bred by Maghreb Arabians. Do you know that Khidar is 75% Egyptian? Of course, his sire is 100% Egyptian but his dam Elizja is 50% Egyptian through the stallions Malik (Hadban Enzahi x Malikah), Shaker El Masri (*Morafic x Zebeda) and Hindi (Korayem x Hindia). What I found really interesting about Elizja, besides her Egyptian ancestry is her sire, Esta-Ghalil and dam, Aica. They are paternal siblings, as they are both sired by Ibn Estasha (Malik x Estasha). However, both sire and dam are similarly bred, as the maternal lines of each horse include classic, older Polish lines. For example, to find Miecznik (Fetysz x Koalicja) in both maternal lines was a very sweet surprise. The expression of this similarity is expressed magnificently in the phenotype of this wonderful horse. In the early 2000's, Khidar was shown in the most significant venues globally, where he earned many champion titles like Belgian National Champion Stallion, All Nations Cup Senior Champion Stallion, European Senior Champion Stallion and World Champion Stallion. Bred across a wide variety of bloodlines, Khidar's influence continues through sons like Mountassar Al Zobair or a grandson like Shanghai EA.

*Tuhotmos Revisited

The straight Egyptian stallion, El Mon Moniet, was a *Tuhotmos son out of a *Tuhotmos daughter. What I found the most fascinating about this particular horse is the intensification of the *Tuhotmos influence, not only expressed genetically but also, phenotypically. He really looked like *Tuhotmos! The sire of *Tuhotmos, El Sareei, was a paternal sibling of  Moniet el Nefous, as both horses were sired by Shahloul (Ibn Rabdan x Bint Radia). So, the only horses in *Tuhotmos' pedigree (who are different) are the dams - the Kazmeen daughter Zareefa and the Sheikh el Arab daughter Wanisa. You have to wonder whether there is any difference at all when you consider that Sheikh el Arab was a son of the Kazmeen daughter, Bint Sabah. The tail female line of  El Mon Moniet traces back to the mare Farida, through the mare *Ein. Consider that *Ein, the dam of Amira Moniet was sired by Anter, a Hamdan son. Hamdan and Shahloul were full brothers! Also, Nazeer, the sire of Abla, was out of Bint Samiha, a Kazmeen daughter. No longer alive, El Mon Moniet was more of a "thinking man's horse", not for everyone but when used correctly, offered a concentrated genetic source of the most revered horses, representing the very core of the EAO breeding program.

Fa Moniet

Fa Moniet was a 1967 *Ibn Moniet el Nefous daughter out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Fada (Faddan x Aaroufa), bred by the Babson Farm. Fa Moniet was a maternal sister to Maarena (Fabah x Fada) who like her dam Fada, was also bred to *Ibn Moniet El Nefous several times, producing the full siblings: AK El Zahra Moniet, AK El Maalouf and AK Monareena. Fada was also the mother of Fadl Dan, a sire for Bentwood Farm and Bint Fada, who was the dam of Al Nahr Montego. If Fa Moniet had only produced Prince Fa Moniet, we would still consider her an influential broodmare but the fact is that she produced other horses like Prince Fa Moniet's full sisters: Akid Bint Ruala and Akid Fa Mona. Fa Moniet also produced Akid Serra Moniet by the Babson/Sirecho stallion, Serr Al Sahih, who in turn, produced a daughter by AK El Zahra Moniet named Akid Hanalei, who when bred to Nabiel, produced Akid Geshan, a Supreme Grand Champion Stallion who like Prince Fa Moniet, traveled to Australia. In her tail female line, Fa Moniet traces to the Babson import, *Maaroufa (Ibn Rabdan x Mahroussa). There is a voluptuousness to Fa Moniet's strong body, an overall harmony influenced by the horses found within the maternal side of her pedigree. The the flowing circular, delightfully curvey lines, all work together to present an old world look, which is unmistakable and point to the influence of Manial Stud and the horses bred by Prince Mohamed Aly Tewfik, still relevant after so many years.

Prince Fa Moniet

Prince Fa Moniet was a 1981 son of The Egyptian Prince out of Fa Moniet, a 1967 *Ibn Moniet el Nefous daughter bred by Henry Babson. I met Prince Fa Moniet in person, at Bentwood Farm, before he was purchased by Ansata. He was a most elegant and refined horse, approximately 8 years old. I was impressed with his overall smoothness, as well as the athletic strength that radiated from his body, wither to croup. A very pleasant, cheerful and friendly personality, I stood right next to him with my arm over his back. I was in Texas for business and had set aside time to visit Bentwood, as I really wanted to see the *Ibn Moniet el Nefous/Babson cross mares. And here I was with a grandson, representing this wonderful cross! Prince Fa Moniet carries 40% Moniet El Nefous blood in his genetic makeup and was true to the Saqlawi strain characteristics, that is longer legs, longer neck and a longer back. He had powerful shoulders and behind, he had elastic, powerful hocks that drove his body forward. He had a lot of lift and his trot was not only powerful, it had a momentary suspension, which made him airborne, as if he were gliding over the ground with feet that never touched the earth. I marveled over Prince Fa Moniet's level of engagement, back to front, when moving about the ring. He used his back muscles naturally (instead of his joints) and therefore, he got under himself impressively; that driving power matched up front with freedom in his shoulders, allowing him to cover much ground in few strides. He was so athletic and I marveled over his ability to very effortlessly, within a stride or so, change direction. It was a joy to watch him show off. At the time, I had no idea who Prince Fa Moniet was but years later, I saw an Ansata advertisement which included his picture and I recognized him as the stallion I had met at Bentwood. Meeting Prince Fa Moniet was an impactful experience for me, for which, I am eternally grateful and remains a very cherished highlight in my life.

Hannah...Full of Grace

The 1963 bay mare, Hannah, was a Fabah daughter out of Fasera, a Fa-Serr daughter out of Fa-Abba (Fabah's full sister). The name Hannah, is based on the Hebrew name, Channah, meaning "favour" or "grace". In the Bible, Hannah was the mother of the prophet, Samuel. It was the Puritans who popularized the use of the name in the 17th century. Hannah was representative of the cross that the Babson Farm practiced, top-crossing Fabah on the Fa-Serr daughters. The caption in the photo above says that Hannah's 1968 filly "Janie" is an *Ibn Moniet El Nefous daughter but she was not. She was an Ansata Abbas Pasha daughter, who was bred to *Ibn Moniet El Nefous and produced the daughters: AN Molly Moniet in 1972 and Janidah in 1977. Hannah was primarily outcrossed to new Egyptian blood but she was bred to Ibn-Fa-Serr and produced the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Bint Hannah, who was then bred back to Fabah and foaled the chestnut stallion, Bah Dan in 1973.

A Black Mare Study

The Vision HG (Thee Desperado x Belle Staar)

Alttafilbari Ezzain (NK Qaswarah x Ajmal Ibtihaj)

It's funny how one photo can inspire a series of disconnected thoughts, which actually, end up working together, pushing your mind into a higher level of understanding and an appreciation for close genetic connections, beyond what may at first appear as only a common coat color, in photographs of similarly-moving horses. The late Vision HG is sired by a Minstril son and out of a Minstril daughter...paternal half-siblings, right? Think again, as they are more closely related than that. Both Thee Desperado and Belle Staar are out of mares that are also paternal half-siblings; each mare sired by The Egyptian Prince (*Morafic x *Bint Mona). Think of these close connections in another manner and that is, in the generation of the great grandparents, the pedigree is made up of eight individuals. In The Vision's pedigree, three of these eight individuals appear twice (Ruminaja Ali, Bahila, TheEgyptianPrince), so in essence, eight individuals become five individuals, with three of the individuals having a higher percentage of influence (25% each) than the other two (12.5% each). The horses in this generation who are different from the others are the mares Asmarr (*Ibn Hafiza x Nagliah) and Hasnaa AlBadeia (Kayed x El Ameera). However, a closer look at these two mares reveal that the outcross blood comes through Asmarr, Kaydahom (Azmi x Om El Saad) and Zaafarana (Balance x Samira). When I saw this photo of The Vision at liberty, a feeling of deja vu swept over me. I had seen this type of horse before...but where? I thought and thought for a long time. The more I thought about it, the more I thought about a paradise I know and call Ezzain, where another black horse lives. Alttafilbari Ezzain (NK Qaswarah x Ajmal Ibtihag) at first glance, may not appear to have any connection with The Vision HG but wait, a second glance at her pedigree will reveal that her granddam Alijamila was a Ruminaja Ali daughter, which makes Alttafilbari a great-granddaughter of Ali, just like The Vision, who is not only a great granddaughter, she is a double great-granddaughter of Ruminaja Ali! However, dig a little deeper and follow the tail female line that runs from Ansata Justina to Ansata Bint Sameh, where you will find the stallion Sameh (El Moez x Sameera), who also appears in The Vision's pedigree, as the sire of *Ibn Hafiza. Sameh was a phenomenal broodmare sire, expressing his influence from the mare side of the pedigree. No surprise to find him here, represented in the strong bodies of two mares who channel their energy through the muscling of their backs and not through their joints, tails held high, nostrils fully dilated...very much a Sameh-line horse for sure! It's that inborn joy and confidence, combined with a look-at-me, I-am-really-pretty attitude that has charmed many breed enthusiasts with what is, a unique expression of that unmistakable Sameh-type. 

TheEgyptianPrince

TheEgyptianPrince, a 1967 stallion, bred by Douglas Marshall of Gleannloch Farm, was a *Morafic son out of *Bint Mona. His pedigree is very interesting to study, as he is one of those rare horses whose genetic influence is concentrated in the blood of only a few individuals. Both his sire and his dam were sired by the great Nazeer, so immediately, you will notice that these 2 horses are paternal siblings. However look closer, as *Morafic and *Bint Mona were more than paternal siblings and this is where it gets so interesting and the connections become even closer. You see, Mabrouka, the dam of *Morafic and Mouna, the dam of *Bint Mona, were full sisters; both mares sired by Sid Abouhom and out of Moniet el Nefous. Therefore, *Morafic and *Bint Mona were actually, full-brother and full-sister in blood! I'll put it another way for you, in the 4th generation of TheEgyptianPrince's pedigree (the great-grandparents generation) the pedigree is made up of only 8 horses, each horse contributing 12.5% of their influence to TheEgyptianPrince. In TheEgyptianPrince's pedigree, these 8 horses are actually, 4 horses who appear twice, in this order, top-to-bottom: Mansour, Bint Samiha, Sid Abouhom and Moniet El Nefous, the genetic influence of each horse doubled to 25%. TheEgyptianPrince has been long-recognized as a consistent broodmare sire. His daughters, for the most part, matured into excellent broodmares, who have taken his influence further into our breeding community. Exploring his genetic makeup, allows us to better understand him and the role he continues to play in modern Egyptian breeding.

Bukra

One of the most important mares in straight Egyptian breeding possessing the El Dahma tail female line, is Bukra, a mare whom the late General Tibor Pettko Von Szandtner (the stud director of the Egyptian Agricultural Organization's El Zahraa stud farm from 1949 to 1959) described as "a very noble mare." Reading the herd book notes written by him and forever preserved by Judith Forbis within her monumental tome, Authentic Arabian Bloodstock II, you immediately realize that Bukra was a mare who was held in high regard by Von Szandtner. Within The Classic Arabian Horse, published in 1976, Judith Forbis stated that the General considered her “a first class, Saqlawi-type mare”. While the photography from this time period does not fully capture her beauty; she really must have been a breathtakingly beautiful mare in her prime to have been rated first-class by a cavalry officer, who valued utility in horses, above all else.

The pedigree of Bukra is classically beautiful, as the majority of her ancestry reflects the Egyptian breeding programs of Abbas Pasha, the Royal Agricultural Society (RAS), Ali Pasha Sherif, Khedive Abbas Hilmi II, Prince Ahmad Pasha Kamal and Prince Mohamed Aly Tewfik. Her sire, Shahloul (Ibn Rabdan x Bint Radia), despite producing an influential son named El Sareei, was a phenomenal sire of broodmares: Futna (Farida), Kateefa (Bint Rissala), Maisa (Zareefa), Moniet el Nefous (Wanisa) and Om el Saad (Yashmak). All of these mares have exerted a profound influence upon our breed, producing sons and daughters who in turn, continued to significantly impact the breed and remain genetically important and vital, up to the present day.

Bukra's dam, Bint Sabah, was sired by Kazmeen (who brings in the outcross blood of the Blunt desert horses like Queen of Sheba, Dajania and Azrek) and out of Sabah (Mabrouk Manial x Bint Obeya). Bint Sabah was a critical mare in Egyptian Arabian horse breeding; as she produced the mare Layla (by Ibn Rabdan) who went on to produce the stallion, Sid Abouhom by El Deree. She also produced the mare *Bint Bint Sabbah by the RAS stallion Baiyad, who was later purchased and imported by Henry Babson and the stallion, Sheikh el Arab (by Mansour), an extremely important sire for the EAO programme who sired daughters like Halima, Yosreia, Wanisa and Yashmak.

***Don't miss a wonderful article about the Bukra horses within The Arabian Breeders Magazine, Volume II, Issue II is The Dawning of a New Tomorrow: The Bukra Story***