Who's On First - Ibn Fa-Serr

Ibn Fa-Serr (Fa-Serr x Fa Deene)

Ibn Fa-Serr, a significant sire for the Babson Farm, was the product of breeding two full siblings together: Fa-Serr and Fa Deene, both horses sired by *Fadl (Ibn Rabdan x Mahroussa) and both out of *Bint Serra I (Sotamm x Serra). What I find so amazing about this breeding is that Ibn Fa-Serr was born 28 years after *Fadl and *Bint Serra I were purchased and imported from Egypt!  While *Fadl and *Bint Serra I are as close-up in the pedigree as the generation of the grandparents; a percentage of 50% *Fadl and 50% *Bint Serra I is more like having these two horses as sire and dam, like Fay-el-Dine, a much beloved stallion of Henry Babson, but unlike Ibn Fa-Serr, was never bred to a full sibling. Do you know how close Fay-el-Dine was bred? Khedena, his full sister's (Fa Deene) 1948 daughter by Khebir (by human standards, Khedena was like Fay-el-Dine's niece). Does this convey the magnitude of significance that Ibn Fa-Serr holds in the Babson Egyptian breeding group?

In The Classic Arabian Horse, author Judith Forbis tells us, "Mr. Babson was the first American Egyptian breeder to experiment with breeding a full brother to full sister, which he did in mating FaSerr to FaDeene. The result was the striking, very prepotent grey stallion Ibn Fa-Serr, a real credit to the breed as an individual and sire, and a testimony to Mr. Babson's foresight."

Ibn Fa-Serr & Homer Watson at the Babson Farm

Whether used in combination with another  sire for the Babson Farm, like the *Bint Bint Sabbah son, Fabah (a successful cross for the Babson Farm) or on his own, Ibn Fa-Serr, a 1960 grey stallion, sired 85 foals over his lifetime, 20 of which were straight Babson Egyptian daughters and 22 straight Babson Egyptian sons. In an article for Desert Heritage Magazine, Joe Ferriss said of Ibn Fa-Serr's influence, "A Saqlawi inbred to Bint Serra, was a sire of superior movement, giving powerful shoulders and higher neck set. His greys tended to show more refinement in the head, like his dam Fa Deene while some of his blacks were more masculine like his sire, Fa-Serr. Generally Ibn Fa-Serr added a bit more height..."

Ibn Fa-Serr & Homer Watson

Homer Watson once remarked of Ibn Fa-Serr's impact within the Babson Farm breeding program, "He's been so great on Fabah daughters.” Ibn Fa-Serr was so prolific within the straight Babson community, that Babson breeders singled out horses without his genetic presence, in order to maintain diversity in the SBE gene pool! 

*Eukaliptus

The story of *Eukaliptus is really, a story of undying hope, born of faith, courage and of course, the love that our Polish brothers and sisters have for the purebred Arabian horse. The way in which Polish people have faced life bravely, despite great challenges and tragedies, is inspiration for all of us, in how to live our lives, even when facing the most adverse circumstances. Although foaled in 1974, *Eukaliptus' story begins in 1907, when Count Jozef Potocki imported the beautiful gray desert-bred stallion named Ibrahim. He became a significant sire at Antoniny, siring horses that remain vital in Polish breeding, up until the present day. One of his most significant sons, Skowronek, became an influential sire for the Crabbet Stud in England and from there, to the world. His son, Naseem, was sold to Russia and when bred to the Janow Podlaski-bred mare, Taraszcza, produced yet another super-influential horse, the stallion, Negatiw, the sire of the most beautiful and genetically-prolific stallion, *Bandos. When bred to the Comet daughter, Eunice (out of the Amurath Sahib daughter, Epigona), *Eukaliptus was born. One of five full siblings (his full sister was Europa, a Polish National Champion mare and one of the best producing mares at Janow Podlaski), *Eukaliptus was tested at the racetrack, proving his athleticism by winning two races and placing in six other races and in 1979, was named the first Polish National Champion Stallion, eventually capturing the interest of Ignacy Jaworowski, to become the chief sire at Michalow State Stud, where he resided for most of his life, except for the time spent at Lasma Arabians in America. Over his lifetime, *Eukaliptus sired almost 400 foals, well before the vastly improved reproductive technology, as we know it today, was available to breeders. Much could be written about his many sons and daughters, which includes four Polish National Champion mares, all of whom continue to influence Polish breeding so positively. He crossed well with Palas daughters, especially with Emigracja (who traces in tail female to the *Nabor daughter, Eskapada), siring Emigrantka, Efemeryda, Emanacja, Emigra, Egeria, Erlanda and Emocja who matured into influential broodmares, furthering the influence of *Eukaliptus. One of the more interesting things about *Eukaliptus was found in his phenotype, because looking at his pedigree and understanding who he was out of,  you didn’t expect his dramatic, exotic type. His dam was a bay, strong-bodied horse, dry and elegant yes, but very Kuhaylan in body type. One would expect *Eukaliptus to resemble his dam but he favored his Ibrahim sire line with his overall old-world and classic breed type which was enhanced through his grey body color. He possessed a longer neck, not heavy and of a beautiful shape, maybe even swan-like but it was his charisma, the energy that emanated from his wonderful, fully black eyes which contributed to a very soft expression. An abundance of kindness radiated from his large, dark eyes, inviting a caress and a loving word from a human friend. His eyes were mesmerizing, possessing a depth that could pierce the stoniest heart. He was perceptive, possibly intellectually curious and was interested in humans and enjoyed their company. For many people who visited Michalow State Stud, the noble*Eukaliptus won many fans with his sweet nature, raising his foreleg in anticipation of being fed something sweet, like sugar.  The late Izabella Pawelec-Zawadzka once said of *Eukaliptus, “The depth of his big, dark eyes seemed to discover the essence of something great and eternal.” He was without a doubt, one of the greatest horses produced in Poland.

A Quick Study of Fa Daalim and Fabo

Fa Daalim (Daaldan x Bint Fa Dena)

Fa Daalim was a 1973 black stallion, sired by the straight Babson Egyptian stallion Daaldan (Faddan x Fay Dalla) and out of the *Ansata Ibn Halima daughter, Bint Fa Dena, bred by Robert Cowling, Houston, Texas and purchased by Marilyn Lang, as a herd sire for her Fantasia Arabians in Sealy, Texas. In tail female line, Fa Daalim traces to *Bint Serra I (Bint Fa Dena-Fa Dena-Khedena-Fa Deene-*Bint Serra I). As the years have gone by, the line of Bint Serra I, in tail female form, has gotten smaller and smaller, to where we find ourselves today, with no tail female line to *Bint Serra I in straight Babson Egyptian bloodlines (AK Bint Serra, sired by Waseem Ibn Bahrou and out of the mare Fa Dena was the last tail female line Bint Serra mare and unfortunately she left no progeny). In addition to his tail female line, Fa Daalim has two additional lines to *Bint Serra I, through the stallions Fay-el-Dine (the sire of Fay Dalla, Daaldan's dam) and Fa-Serr (the sire of Fa Dena, Bint Fa Dena's dam). In addition to the  *Bint Serra blood, Fa Daalim carried the blood of two other source Babson Egyptian mares which are as rare to find, as *Bint Serra I is today: *Bint Saada and *Bint Bint Durra. Fa Daalim does not carry any lines to *Maaroufa, one of the two more prolific Egyptian mares in the Babson program. Fa Daalim's genetic fiber includes the stallion *Fadl (Maaroufa's full brother) and only four of the five mares imported by Henry Babson: *Bint Serra I, *Bint Saada, *Bint Bint Durra and *Bint Bint Sabbah.

Fabo (Fabah x Misimma)

What I found fascinating about Fa Daalim is the similarity in his pedigree with another Babson horse, Fabo (Fabah x Misimma). Both horses, in genotype, are more similar to each other, than they are different. Both horses are tail female *Bint Serra I, tracing through the same mare, Khedena (Khedena is the dam of Misimma and Fa Dena). While Fa Daalim's dam, Bint Fa Dena is an *Ansata Ibn Halima daughter (traces to Bint Sabah through Halima); Fabo is a son of Fabah, who also traces to Bint Sabah through his dam and Bint Sabah's daughter, *Bint Bint Sabbah. The difference in the dams of both horses, allows Fabo to bring in the same amount of additional Bint Serra blood, as we find in Fa Daalim: two lines through the same horses, Fay-el-Dine and Fa-Serr.

*Ansata Ibn Halima (Nazeer x Halima)

And yet, physically, both horses are different, Fabo having a more pronounced Saqlawi look (like Fay-el-Dine) while Fa Daalim, as influenced by *Ansata Ibn Halima, is visually, a representation of the type we have learned to accept as Dahman. Although perhaps, that little bit more of leg and little bit more neck we see in Fa Daalim is the influence of *Bint Serra I. No matter how many times, I compare and contrast similarly-bred horses, I am always surprised over the expression of the genetic influence of the ancestral elements.

*Serag: A Noble Son of Egypt

*Serag (Anter x Bint Om el Saad)

"...if you are to choose a companion in the Arabian horse world, a horse to share a life with you or to fight for you, you can find no better friend than a good Anter of any branch." - Philippe Paraskevas, The Egyptian Alternative, Volume II

*Serag, a chestnut stallion, foaled in 1972, was a son of Anter and out of the Nazeer daughter, Bint Om el Saad. *Serag was bred by the EAO and as a six year old stallion, was purchased by Harry Rosen of New Mexico and imported to America. *Serag caught the eye of Jarrell McCracken of Bentwood Farm in Texas, as he purchased *Serag in 1979; however, *Serag would not remain long at Bentwood Farm, as in 1980 he was purchased by Nagib Audi and exported to Brazil, siring approximately 30 horses in that country. In 1991, *Serag returned to the United States, making his forever home with Al and Judi Parks of Abbasiyah International, then located  in Florida. Judi Parks still remembers the day that *Serag arrived from Brazil:  "When the truck ramp dropped and *Serag walked out, our mouths dropped open.  *Serag was the most refined and elegant stallion that we had ever seen.  His neck was a mile long and he held it up surveying his new home.  His color was so dark he was almost purple with a red hue to his mane.  He did not have an exotic head but you could just see the desert in his eyes."   

*Serag sired an additional twenty-five horses in this period of his life. As it is with all horses we love, they never live as long as we need and want them to and *Serag died in 1995 and was laid to rest in a grove of mighty oak trees and yellow roses, a powerful reminder that the most noble of all horses, a friend of man, was laid to rest among the most noble of all trees and flowers.

*Serag's dam, Bint Om el Saad was also the dam of the 1971 United States National Champion Mare, *Serenity Sonbolah, however, to say that *Serag and *Serenity Sonbolah were only maternal siblings is not correct, as the horses are more closely related than half-siblings. *Serenity Sonbolah was sired by Sameh, who like Anter, was bred at the Inshass Stud of Kings Fouad and Farouk. Sameh was sired by El Moez, an Ibn Rabdan grandson out of Bint Zareefa (Hadban x Zareefa) a mare bred by Prince Kemal al Dine; while Anter was sired by Hamdan, an Ibn Rabdan son and out of the mare, Obeya, a granddaughter of Bint Zareefa. When you calculate the percentages, *Serenity Sonbolah possessed approximately 70% of the same blood as *Serag. To further underscore their similarity, both horses are not only Kuhaylan Rodan in tail female line, they are also of the Jamil el Kebir sire line, one of four sire lines extant in straight Egyptian breeding.

Shortly after the second world war, General Tibor von Pettko-Szandtner, an experienced horseman and former Director of Babolna Stud in Hungary was hired as the Director of El Zahraa. With much discipline and employing very strict standards of selection, the General worked hard to improve the conformation of the horses that he inherited at El Zahraa. As a cavalryman, his focus was one of utility and purpose and not necessarily the maximization of breed type. I think of the stallion, Sid Abouhom, whom the General not only preferred but considered vital to the program; while Dr. Ameen Zaher, a man of many behind-the-scene roles at El Zahraa including veterinarian, was skeptical of Sid Abouhom, whom he felt lacked refinement. However, despite Dr. Zaher's strongest criticisms, the General never wavered in his resolve nor the job he felt he must do while employed as the stud director at El Zahraa. When the horses of the Inshass Stud were dispersed, it was also the General who personally selected the horses he wanted to incorporate into the EAO breeding program. He developed an elite group of mares and stallions which reflected his vision  and it wasn't long before the world started to knock on El Zahraa's doors. Although *Serag was born thirteen years after the tenure of the General had come to an end,  as an individual, *Serag, physically, was loyal to the objectives of General von Szandtner and represented the type of horse that the General desired to breed. *Serag was substantial in body, his large, wide, heavily-muscled hind end was balanced with an equally powerful front end, consisting of a broad chest, massive laid-back shoulders and a more masculine neck which was in proportion to the rest of his body, not heavy and well set, flowing out of the withers. And yet, for all of his powerful build, he was very much what most people expect an Arabian horse to be, with wonderful tail carriage, excellent pigmentation and a clean, dry head, accentuated by the prominence of bones and veins. He was a masculine version of his sister, *Serenity Sonbolah, albeit with a bit more length in his back. In his brilliant literary tribute to the EAO horse, The Egyptian Alternative, Volume II, Philippe Paraskevas states, "Typical Rabdan males always tend to be colorful characters and powerful looking animals; they often boast wide chests and can be strikingly broad across the back and hindquarters, deep of girth and sometimes massive overall." How impressive was *Serag's phenotype? When *Serag was owned by Najib Audi, the Polish State Studs were interested in purchasing him and had conveyed an offer but at the time, Najib did not want to sell him. In these modern times, it's not an unusual occurrence to learn that the Polish State Studs have added Egyptian bloodlines like Laheeb, Al Maraam or Shams Sharav AA to their breeding program but in *Serag's time, this consideration would have been unique, noteworthy and out-of-the-ordinary,  which speaks of *Serag's quality and physical attributes.

While *Serag's lifetime foal count is fifty-five, only a small number of those foals qualify as straight Egyptian and of those horses, only a few have bred forward, a powerful reminder of the fragility of bloodlines and how easily we can lose them. *Serag's son, Mahtar (out of Fakhara Medallela) sired two daughters (out of RG Desert Delilah). One was named Dohayah, who was exported to France and her full sister named Domia, who remained in America. Both mares have produced foals for their owners. Mahtar's full sister, Manar, was exported to France and produced a number of horses. Mayaada, a full sister to Manar and Mahtar, was exported to Belgium and has left progeny in two countries: Belgium and France. The *Serag daughter, Rowaah (out of *Bint Rakia) produced a son and a daughter by a straight Egyptian son of Sahlih (out of Asmaar, the maternal grand dam of Thee Desperado). The beautiful mare, Nenaa, a powerfully moving *Serag daughter out of Nilequest Lady (Shaikh Al Badi x Glorieta Shahlana) has produced colts for two  different breeders in Florida and Kansas. Illa Bint Serag, a daughter out of the Pritzlaff mare, Black Solataire, produced a colt, Kamal Ibn Serag, a successful sire with thirteen get sired. The most successful of all the *Serag get, as well as the one who resembles him closely, is Ahsen el Serag (out of AK Ahliyeh), having sired foals in a number of countries: Saudi Arabia, Europe and America. Ahsen el Serag, a 1995 chestnut stallion, remains with Al and Judi Parks, now located in Arizona.

The name "Serag" is an Egyptian name more commonly used as a surname instead of a first name. The meaning of "Serag" is "destiny" or "luck" but what I found interesting is that the name "Serag"  suggests a clever mind, one that is quick thinking and ready to defend the underdog, suffering from a social injustice.  What impressed me most about the life of *Serag is how little we know about him, as an individual. Aside from a small article published in a breed magazine, it is challenging to find information on this particular horse. It's as if this grand horse, a son of King Farouk's beloved chestnut stallion, Anter and brother of a beloved, courageous and record-setting Egyptian mare, *Serenity Sonbolah, never existed. For example, he left Egypt as a six year old stallion. Was he used at stud? Did he sire any foals for the EAO? Unfortunately, I found no record of any get sired by him, while he was in Egypt. It is my hope that *Serag's life will inspire others to remember him, to seek his influence, to cherish the unique horse that he was and to bestow upon him the reverence that a horse of his quality deserves, so that he continues to remain relevant  in our community, before it is too late to make any difference. We don't have many sources of his bloodline left, they remain rich sources of outcross blood, in a gene pool dominated by too few horses. In closing, *Serag was greater than anyone who owned him or the circumstances that narrowed the legacy that he would leave us. He was an authentic son of the desert, reminding us of the historic Bedouin-bred horse, a horse who prospered despite an environment that was harsh and unforgiving, to serve as the favored mount of Pashas, Princes, Warriors and Kings. His heritage is as compelling as watching a theatrical classic like Lawrence of Arabia. Judi Parks sums up the goosebump-producing significance of living with a horse like *Serag as,

"A horse that has been on three continents and from one of the oldest breeding programs, the program of Kings and is there, standing right in front of you... it was quite a thrill to say the least."

***this blog is lovingly dedicated to the memory of General Tibor Pettko von Szandtner, Dr. Ameen Zaher and Judi Parks, in whose care the great *Serag was entrusted. She remains a champion of *Serag and with gratitude, I thank her for all of her input on this special horse's life. Also, a huge thank you to Johnny Johnston and the wonderful photo of *Serag, taken at Bentwood Farm, Waco, Texas.

The Jewel of Kuwait: NK Nariman

NK Nariman (Salaa el Dine x Amrullah)

When Usamah Alkazemi of Ezzain Arabians, located in Kuwait, purchased the young mare, NK Jurie from Dr. Hans Nagel of Katharinenhof, in Northern Germany, little did he realize at the time, the significance that this young filly would have in establishing a breeding program recognized around the world for producing  horses who conform to a unique standard of type, possessing a level of refinement and elegance which is elusive and hard to find within the world of Egyptian Arabian horse breeding.

NK Jurie (NK Hafid Jamil x NK Nariman)

NK Jurie is out of NK Nariman, a 1995 mare who represents the third generation of Dr. Nagel's breeding program utilizing the Alaa el Din daughter, Hanan, in combination with carefully chosen stallions: Ansata Halim Shah (*Ansata Ibn Halima x Ansata Rosetta), Madkour I (Hadban Enzahi x Moheba II) and Ghazal (Nazeer x Bukra). Nariman is the result of a Hanan son (Salaa el Dine) bred to a double Hanan granddaughter (Amrullah). "The Ghazala-daughter Amrullah (Jamil x Ghazala) was one of the very prolific broodmares of the Obayan family, producing five excellent daughters." writes Dr. Nagel. At this point in his program, Dr. Nagel was exploring the possibility of a "nick" between the Hanan sons: Salaa el Dine and *Jamil, choosing to breed Salaa el Dine to the daughters of *Jamil. "Salaa el Dine daughters had their own typical appeal and the qualities of being consistent and reliable broodmares." says Dr. Nagel. Nariman is one of several siblings produced from this combination and a full sister to mares like Nadeema, Nessma and Aischa, to name a few of these daughters. Through NK Jurie, Usamah fell in love with NK Nariman and desired to incorporate more of her influence into his program.

"She is the jewel and was the horse that tied me to Dr. Nagel's program."

During this time, NK Nariman  had also produced NK Alamirah and a full brother named NK Qaswarah, both of whom were purchased for Ezzain. "NK Nariman, one of the top broodmares in Katharinenhof gave birth to four daughters and one stallion of high class, NK Qaswarah." states Dr. Nagel. While NK Jurie has the distinction of bringing awareness for the reproductive capabilities of her dam, in combination with her sire, NK Hafid Jamil (with four lines to Hanan, this stallion introduces the blood of two additional mares used in the Katharinenhof breeding program: Lotfeia and Ansata Gloriana), it would not be NK Jurie or her daughter, Jureiah, to impact the Ezzain breeding program; rather, it would be her siblings, NK Alamirah, through her Ansata AlMurtajiz (Ansata Hejazi x Ansata Samsara) daughter, Alamirah Ezzain and NK Qaswarah (who would mature into the role of chief sire for Ezzain, with a very high percentage of the Ezzain horses, influenced by him as sire, grandsire and great grandsire) who would breed forward and exert the influence of the cross between NK Nariman and NK Hafid Jamil. In the six years since visiting Ezzain, many of the promising young horses I met at that time are now fully mature and exerting all of their genetic promise forward into the future, like Hooreiah, who is no longer a filly but now, an important broodmare, producing fillies of her own: Badiaah (by Thettwa) and Hhamdah (by Radhei) and a colt, Dawwas (by Thettwa). In addition to Hooreiah, Alamirah also produced Monifah (by the Qaswarah son, Aneesilnefous), Maliikah (by the charismatic Qaswarah son, Mohhareb, who also sired the colt, Ammuri), Monirah (by Thettwa's young son, Doaabob), a full brother to Hooreiah named Hermaas and the exciting young bay stallion, Zain (by the black-colored Qaswarah son, Thettwa).  As a breeding stallion, Zain, like his maternal sister, Hooreiah, shows the excellence of the ancestral elements that brought him into existence, siring three promising fillies: Zaiiana, Sultana, Sheikah and two sons: Hussam and Wanees, all of whom will one day broaden the impact of a mare named Nariman, the jewel of Kuwait.

Texas Red: The Story of AK Bint Roufah

AK Bint Roufah (*Ibn Moniet el Nefous x Roufah)

AK Bint Roufah was a 1981 chestnut mare, bred by Bentwood Farm in Waco, Texas. A daughter of *Ibn Moniet el Nefous and out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Roufah (Ibn Fa-Serr x Bah Roufa); AK Bint Roufah was one of eighty-nine mares sold through the Sotheby Sale, when the breeding program of Bentwood Farm was dispersed by the First Interstate Bank of Arizona.

I visited Bentwood Farm prior to the Sotheby sale. I would like to say that my trip was focused, that I had a carefully thought out list of horses that I prepared in advance or even, an agenda driven by family groups that would make the trip all the more educational, analyzing the conformational and breed type attributes of each individual and family but that would not be exactly truthful. You see, Bentwood was "my Hollywood" and the horses occupied roles of admiration that "movie stars" enjoy in other people's lives. I couldn't tell you which horse I wanted to see over another, because I wanted to see them all. And Bentwood was a big place, lots of land and lots of horses. Within a few minutes of arriving, I met Ansata Abbas Pasha, as well as the young TheEgyptianPrince son, Prince Fa Moniet and I was overwhelmed, as I began to realize that the horses from the pages of the books and magazines that I had read, were suddenly, standing right in front of me. It was a powerful and deeply moving experience.

As I drove back to the airport and reflected upon the many horses that I had seen,  it would be the Babson/Ibn Moniet el Nefous mares, horses like AK Bint Roufah, who made the biggest impression upon me. I couldn't think of anything else, so smitten was I by these particular horses. Here I am, 30 years later and I am still under the spell of those horses. I can't forget them. So much so, that when I see a picture, it brings me right back to that magical time and place, standing amongst those wonderful mares. To say that it was one of the more memorable experiences of my life would be an understatement. Collectively, as a breeding group unto themselves, these mares possessed strong, balanced bodies, enhanced by gently flowing,  smooth, circular lines (that's the Ibn Rabdan in them but more of that later). The Moniet influence "opened" the horses up, adding a bit of length to the neck, back and legs. While these mares were built wide front-to-back, with beautiful laid-back shoulders, big hips, powerful hind ends, nicely muscled forearms and gaskins, strong toplines; they remained elegant, with just enough "stretch" to keep them from being "chunky". It was a good cross producing mares with longer but clean, dry heads, beautiful eyes, a beautiful working neck with a little more length in the throatlatch and longer forearms.

It's interesting to see a pedigree like AK Bint Roufah's pedigree, as concentrated as it is for only a few key horses. *Ibn Moniet el Nefous is the end result of a grandson (*Morafic) bred to his maternal grand dam (Moniet el Nefous) however, compare/contrast this horse with Ibn Fa-Serr, the sire of Roufah, who is the product of a full-brother-to-full-sister mating. So, on the paternal side of the pedigree, we find that approximately 60%, a little more than half of *Ibn Moniet's influence comes from Moniet el Nefous, while on the maternal side, 40% of Roufah's influence comes from the cross of *Fadl and *Bint Serra I. There's a lot of "magic" at work in this pedigree as you have two intensely-bred Saqlawi stallions driving the genetic influence, each horse on a different side of the pedigree. It's really ingenious, when you stop for a moment to fully consider the significance and the harmony of what "the paper" says, in terms of how two key horses dominate and balance the genetic flow which resulted in a mare like AK Bint Roufah.

Ibn Rabdan (Rabdan el Azrak x Bint Gamila) appears multiple times in the pedigree, as many as eight with an influence factor of approximately 24% (although his sire and dam do appear in the pedigree through other sources, for example, Bint Gamila is the dam of the stallion, Baiyad, the sire of *Bint Bint Sabbah), which helps to explain the flowing, circular lines in the bodies of these mares; however, what I found interesting in this pedigree is the mare, Bint Sabah (Kazmeen x Sabah), whom we find through her son, Sheikh el Arab (the sire of Wanisa, Moniet el Nefous' dam) and through her daughters, Layla (the dam of Sid Abouhom) and *Bint Bint Sabbah (the dam of Fabah).  I can't help but wonder over the opportunities had AK Bint Roufah been bred to one of the Bukra (Shahloul x Bint Sabah) line horses, like the 1980 stallion, Ansata Halim Shah (*Ansata Ibn Halima x Ansata Rosetta).  In Dr. Hans Nagel's noteworthy book, Hanan, he presents many positive attributes for utilizing Bukra's influence, i.e. a fine, not heavy throatlatch, a short, well-muscled hindquarter with an excellent angle of the hocks, a smaller-sized head, powerful movement, good pigmentation (especially in combination with the fleabitten coat colour) and a delightful temperament. I found the following passage from Dr. Nagel relevant, as it underscores my instinct in utilizing the Bukra bloodline, in combination with the bloodline of Moniet el Nefous and building upon the already present sources of Bint Sabah in AK Bint Roufah's genetic fiber,

"Thus the elements of Bukra and Mahrousa have the joint role of dominating over undesired elements and, with the males of the Nazeer line, to form a morphologically correct horse."

In my opinion, the Bukra bloodline can be a balancing element, genetically, to counter the tendency to go "long and hot" in the Moniet horses. That's how I would have bred AK Bint Roufah, had I owned her.

All that aside, AK Bint Roufah was a good broodmare, producing right through to the early 90's. She remains relevant in today's Egyptian breeding population. One of the more exciting (well, for me) crosses was her daughter, the 1988 bay mare, AK Fay Roufah, who was bred back to reinforce her Babson bloodlines, as she was a daughter of the straight Babson Egyptian stallion, Mah Hab (Mahrouf x Bah Habba).  What I found really interesting about the cross with Mah Hab, is the intensification of what was a successful cross within the Babson Farm breeding program, Ibn Fa-Serr with Fabah (one cross with Bah Roufa producing Roufah and one cross with Ser Habba,  producing Bah Habba, the dam of Mah Hab*). Owned by Barefoot Arabians, she was also bred to the *Ansata Ibn Halima son, Halim el Kateef, producing a stallion, BA Karouf and to the Nabiel son, Barefoots Ladid (out of the AK El Zahra Moniet, AH Ladada, which adds more Babson lines) producing several daughters.

*There's actually another cross (although not with Ibn Fa-Serr directly but still a combination of *Bint Serra I with *Bint Bint Sabbah) and that is the Fay-el-Dine daughter, Aaroufa, bred to Fabah, to produce Mahrouf, the sire of Mah Hab.