Damess Albadeia, foaled in 2011, is a result of top-crossing the Ariela-bred Al Maraam (Imperial Imdal x The Vision HG) on select Albadeia-bred mares like Farha Albadeia, a Farid Albadeia daughter, out of the World Champion Arabian mare, Gelgelah Albadeia. Nasr Marei leased Al Maraam not long after Al Maraam returned from a breeding lease made by the Michalow State Stud in Poland.
"I firmly believe as a breeder that one has to have a dynamic approach to breeding and be very careful in selecting horses used in the program. As a breeder, I can see always areas that can be improved in the quality of my herd. Even though he was a horse that I never have seen, except in pictures; I was interested in Al Maraam's conformation and of course, in his pedigree." - Nasr Marei
Al Maraam, a former Israeli Reserve National Champion Stallion, has long been recognized for having sired horses who possess an over-abundance of type, charisma and trainability, as they are generous, willing and kind horses in temperament. A mutual friend, who knows Damess Albadeia personally, said that he is a striking individual, harmonious of body, charismatic like his sire and while ebony black in color, possesses golden brown highlights which further intensify his dramatic presence. He literally takes your breath away.
I was overwhelmed by Damess' strong and dramatic physical expression of breed type, without sacrificing substance. I was impressed by his powerfully muscled shoulders, his broad chest, longer forearms, shorter cannons and excellent tail carriage. When Nasr spoke about Damess, you could tell from the sound of his voice, how much he loved this particular horse.
"Damess Albadeia followed in his grandmother’s steps by being black and of extreme type and quality as well as his sire’s, by being a powerhouse and correct."
Hadban Enzahi by strain (approx. 44% of his pedigree is represented by horses of this strain, including the tail female line) and with a Saklawi I sire line; Damess' role within the Albadeia program was one of transition, as he represented the new blood that Nasr desired to bring into his breeding program, while reinforcing the strong and vibrant foundation that had sustained Albadeia for eighty-plus years. Nasr expected that Damess Albadeia, like Kayed before him, would transform the Albadeia program, in order to remain relevant to a future generation of Arabian horse enthusiasts. As a matter of fact, Kayed appears three times in the pedigree of Damess Albadeia (approx. 11% genetic influence): twice through his son, Ameer Albadeia and through his daughter, Hasna el Badia, who appears in the tail female line of Al Maraam. However, life has a way of changing the best plans and redirecting what once was visionary thinking, into a perpetuation of the legacy of Albadeia Stud.
James Cleland of Al Salsabeel Stud in Australia recently purchased Damess Albadeia and is in the process of importing him to Australia. When James was young, his family owned a large sheep and cattle operation in South Australia. Australian stock horses, crossed with Arab bloodlines, were important in the family business, as they were used to work the stock on the property. James recalls,
"one year, a new colt arrived on the property. He was a pure Arab colt and I was immediately attracted to him. And somewhere within this attraction, began my wonderful life journey with the Arabian horse."
Many years later, James remembers seeing the extraordinary Simeon Sadik at a show. The romantic allure and mystery of the black stallion we all dream about had materialized into physical form for James and consumed by Sadik's exquisite beauty, he followed the trail that led him right to Simeon Stud, his breeder.
"I started to dream about straight Egyptians."
Eventually, James would purchase his first straight Egyptian filly, Simeon Silona, a mare who incorporates many of Simeon Stud's stallions in her pedigree: Asfour, Anaza Bay Shahh and Imperial Madaar. In the years since, James has assembled an impressive group of straight Egyptian horses, including Simeon Sabina, his East Coast Reserve Champion Mare, sired by Asfour and out of the Albadeia-bred Ibtehag Albadeia, a multi-year National Champion Mare of Egypt. In hindsight, one has to really wonder whether Sabina was like a harbinger for the eventual impact that Albadeia Stud would have on James' breeding program, which primarily consists of bloodlines bred by Simeon Stud.
"I was looking for an Albadeia son of Laheeb. I loved Damess' dam, Farha, and saw Damess as a foal and really loved him."
When James inquired about Damess, not really sure of what the outcome might be; all of the heavenly bodies must have been aligned in his favor, as the pride of Albadeia Stud would soon become the treasure of Al Salsabeel Stud! This will be an exciting time for James and his family. At the very top of his list are plans to breed Damess to Simeon Sabina, which is a very interesting cross, as the pedigree will combine the bloodlines of two Egyptian National Champion horses: Ibtehag Albadeia with Farid Albadeia, who won the National Champion Stallion title several times. It was 1997, when Ibtehag Albadeia herself was bred to Farid Albadeia, resulting in a colt named Inshallah Albadeia in 1998, who eventually was exported to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. James is excited over the impact that Damess Albadeia will have on his program and he further explains what he has been thinking, in terms of using the stallion on his select group of mares.
"Damess will also be bred to our Imperial Madaar daughters, our two Asfour daughters, plus a group of Samech daughters. We can not wait! We are all very excited indeed!"
In an interview with David Gillet of Diamond Road Arabian Stud, titled 60 Years of Simeon and published within the 2017 issue of Arabian Studs & Stallions, when asked about her initial selection of Egyptian mares, Marion Richmond explained,
"We bought 5 mares on the second trip but only 27 Ibn Galal V (Ibn Galal x 10 Hosna) has descendants at the Farm today, although all the mares produced well for the stud. It is the daughters of 27 Ibn Galal V that makeup the nucleus of the farm today, as they have done for close to 30 years now."
And this is where I find the opportunity for Damess Albadeia not only exciting but also, of enormous potential for Al Salsabeel Stud, as 27 Ibn Galal V, in both the tail female line of her sire and dam, traces to Venus, the source mare of the Hadban Enzahi strain in straight Egyptian breeding. 27 Ibn Galal V was a pure-in-strain Hadbah and her sire, Ibn Galal, was a grandson of Yosreia (Sheikh El Arab x Hind), the same dam line found in Damess Albadeia's tail female line! The breeding core of both Albadeia and Simeon Stud claimed the Hadban strain as a critical component. The horses of the Hadban Enzahi strain are key elements in both programs. So, no surprise over how the Hadban lines are complementary to each other and yet, Damess Albadeia offers an added "twist", as his pedigree includes 25% influence from the Saqlawi strain, which includes the dam line of his sire. The tail female line of Al Maraam runs via his dam, The Vision AA, through the 1946 RAS mare Zaafarana. However, the Saqlawi influence of The Vision AA also includes horses like TheEgyptianPrince (2 lines through AK Amiri Asmarr, the dam of Thee Desperado and Alia-Aenor, the dam of Belle Staar), *Morafic and his full sister, *Ansata Bint Mabrouka and Ansata Shah Zaman. There's an inborn elegance to Damess Albadeia and recognizing the Saqlawi influence in this horse is one giant step in understanding where this elegance comes from and why it is challenging to contain the excitement that I feel for James, as he welcomes Damess Albadeia to his home, Al Salsabeel Stud. I think James said it best, when he said,
"Damess Albadeia will be very loved and treasured."
I believe that somewhere, Nasr, is smiling over James' heartfelt words. All he ever wanted was for people to love his beloved horses, as much as he loved them.
Very dynamic handsome stallions who shoulď be a gamechanger for Aussie Egyptian breeders.
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