Al Nahr Mon Ami

Al Nahr Mon Ami (*Ibn Moniet el Nefous x Bint Fada), as photographed by the late Johnny Johnston

Al Nahr Mon Ami was a 1967 grey mare, who was representative of the breeding program that the late Jay Stream was engaged in during the 60's and 70's; that is, crossing *Ibn Moniet el Nefous (*Morafic x Moniet el Nefous), a stallion he purchased and imported from the EAO, onto select straight Egyptian mares, like the mares he had purchased from the Babson Farm. Al Nahr Mon Ami is out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare Bint Fada (Fa-Serr x Fada), sired by *Ibn Moniet el Nefous (aka IMEN).  She is a full sibling to the stallions, Al Nahr Montego and AN Monte Carlo plus the mares, Bint Bint Fada and AN Monica. What I find interesting today about Bint Fada is that she is pure-in-the-strain Saqlawi and if you study her pedigree, not only is she Saqlawi in both tail female lines (sire and dam), genetically, she is influenced more by horses from the Saqlawi strain, than by any other strain; as much as 50+%. While in her time, Bint Fada was not recognized as a Saqlawi horse, today, thanks to the science of mtDNA, we can appreciate the breeding to *Ibn Moniet el Nefous in a new way, as he is also pure-in-the-strain Saqlawi. 

Bint Fada (Fa-Serr x Fada), as photographed by the late Johnny Johnston

A quality that I appreciate in Babson horses is their substance. They are not narrow, they are generously proportioned, within flowing, circular lines. Carl Raswan coined the phrase "three circle horses" which is a good way to put into words, what one sees with the eyes.  Prior to the 1970's, Arabian horses were judged by a standard illustrated by Glady Brown Edwards in the early 50's:

I believe this standard also favored the conformation of the Babson horse with broad chests, well laid-back shoulders, a deep heart girth, all within a compact frame. When the standard was updated in the early 1970's, it favored the type of horse that resulted from crossing the powerfully built Babson mares with the stretchy frame of *Ibn Moniet el Nefous. The old horsemen/horsewomen of the time would refer to it in this manner: "*Ibn Moniet el Nefous 'opened' those mares up." The Babson program was a closed breeding herd, confined to breeding horses who descend in all lines from only the horses that Henry Babson imported from Egypt in 1932. While sharing common ground in their ancestral elements, the new Egyptian blood, bred in combinations that were a little different from the Babson horses, offered breeders the opportunity to produce a more modern phenotype, which was growing in favor around the world.

At this time, I was a young child, however, a voracious student of the breed. I had a strong desire to learn everything I could about the Egyptian Arabian horse, within the limitations imposed by childhood. I don't come from horse people, so my real world horse experience was through the written pages of the articles and books published by Judith Forbis, of the world famous Ansata Arabian Stud.  Much of what I understood, if not all I knew about Egyptian horses, came from Judi and specifically, within Babson lines, the straight Babson Egyptian mares that she chose, when she exchanged Ansata Abbas Pasha for those mares. Here, is where my love for the Babson/Halimas began. With all that said, you will understand my overwhelming appreciation for the Babson/Halima cross, especially in my later teenage years, when my knowledge of the Babson/Halimas was made more real by the horses that I personally met at Gail Hoff's training and breeding farm, Princeton Arabians, i.e. Pri Serr Sudan. 

People still have alot to say about Bentwood Farm, the breeding program established by the late Jarrell McCracken. Bentwood Farm, at the time, had the second largest breeding group of straight Babson horses, including the horses purchased from Jay Stream like Bint Fada and Al Nahr Mon Ami. At the time, breeders really didn't breed straight Babson Egyptian horses outside of the Babson program. This is exactly the reason why I appreciated the Bentwood program and the diverse opportunities that Bentwood created through these controversial crosses. It just made sense to me, to combine bloodlines that because of geographical location, had never been available to combine before. Where else could someone find Anter daughters crossed with straight Babson stallions and of course, straight Babson Egyptian mares crossed with stallions outside of the Babson program, like *Ibn Moniet el Nefous? You can therefore, understand the enthusiasm I possessed for the IMEN/Babson crosses, when I visited Bentwood Farm in the 1980's. They were the focus of my trip and no disappointment, they were my favorite horses. I still remember them, that is the impression they made upon me, as these horses more consistently fit within the mental image I had, of what the Abbas Pasha horse must have looked like. Slowly, I started to realize that the Egyptian horses who caught my attention were horses born from the blending of Babson lines with the newer Egyptian blood, like *Ibn Moniet el Nefous and *Ansata Ibn Halima.

Al Nahr Mon Ami was bred to her sire, as well as other powerfully Moniet-line stallions like TheEgyptianPrince and Moniet el Sharaf, for an intensification of that side of her pedigree. She was also bred to the Kuhaylan Rodan stallion, *Refky (*Morafic x Rafica). However, when Al Nahr Mon Ami was bred to *Ansata Ibn Halima, the cross resulted in a horse closer to my ideal, that being the most beautiful mare, AK Attallah. 

This mare was so beautiful, she made you wish that there were more versions of her. She went to the Maxwells in England and was bred to the pure Crabbet stallion, Indian Silver (Indian Magic x Dalika), producing the extraordinary mare, Aliha, who in turn, when bred to *El Shaklan, produced the unforgettable Atlantica. 

Aliha (Indian Silver x AK Attallah) with Emma Maxwell in the world famous photo taken at the 1992 European Championships by Betty Finke.

I also remember AK Attallah's daughter by Ruminaja Ali, Bint Attallah, bred by Dr. Charles & Judy Jones of Attallah Arabian Farm. Bint Attallah produced the incredible stallions, Phaaros and Tallahsman, as well as the beautiful mare, Thee Desperada, all bred by veteran straight Egyptian breeder, Judy Guess. I find myself, all these years later, still wishing that Al Nahr Mon Ami had been bred back within Babson breeding and especially to a stallion like Fabah (*Fadl x *Bint Bint Sabbah), who incidentally, was bred to her dam, Bint Fada, producing the stallion, The Shah, an immensly popular stallion in the UK.  I also wish that Ansata el Sherif had been bred to Al Nahr Mon Ami, given the success of the cross which yielded AK Attallah. Also, what both of these stallions have in common is Bint Sabah, the dam of the Babson import, *Bint Bint Sabbah and the dam of Bukra, the maternal granddam of Ansata el Sherif. Again, for me, these horses are a powerful reminder, in a very modern age, of the old world type favored, collected and bred by Abbas Pasha.

***This blog post was originally published in April 2021***

Char Turf

There was a time, not so long ago, when one could find Arabian horses who resembled in phenotype, Char Turf, who incidentally, was born this day, sixty-one years ago! I am reminded of a quotation once made by fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld,

"I love classic beauty. It's an idea of beauty with no standard." 

Char Turf reminds us of the authentic and honest beauty that nature, in her infinite wisdom, designed for the Arab horse, in order for the horse  to survive and prosper within a harsh and unforgiving desert climate. Among breed enthusiasts, it is this functional beauty that inspires and encourages us in our love for the breed. 

Char Turf was a son of  Fa-Turf (*Fadl x *Turfa) and out of Habbana, an Ibn Fadl daughter bred by Henry Babson and purchased by Dr. Keith Krausnick of Shar-Char Farm, who bred Char Turf. Just as a point of clarification, Char Turf is not straight Egyptian. He is considered Egyptian-Sa'ud. 

What I found interesting about Char Turf is the concentrated line breeding to *Fadl (Ibn Rabdan x Mahroussa) and, *Turfa. *Fadl appears four times in the pedigree, as a paternal grandsire, a maternal great-grandsire and twice maternal great-great grandsire, representing 50% of the pedigree, which explains the strong and solid, circular, balanced phenotype that Ibn Rabdan (Rabdan El Azrak x Bint Gamila) is known for passing. Incidentally, through his son, *Fadl, Ibn Rabdan's influence in the pedigree is at 25%. In combination with the 2 lines to *Turfa (as a paternal grandam and maternal great grandam), I am compelled to point out to you dear reader that Fa-Turf and Ibn Fadl are full brothers! And *Turfa, as compared to *Fadl,  represents a slightly smaller percentage of influence, at 37.5%. The only other horses in the pedigree who don't carry  a blood connection to either *Fadl or *Turfa, are the Babson imports *Bint Serra I (Sotamm x Serra) and *Bint Bint Sabbah (Baiyad x Bint Sabah), each mare contributing 6.25% of their genetic influence. 

*Turfa’s legacy was felt more strongly through Ibn Fadl’s daughters, highly esteemed broodmares and outstanding producers, like Habbana. In addition to Char Turf, Habbana also produced Sirbana by Sirecho and the full siblings by Negem (Fa-Serr x Fay-Negma): Shar Bana, Shar Anna and Char Mabrouk. FYI, at Shar-Char Farm, the fillies were named with the prefix, "Shar", while the colts were named with the prefix, "Char". 

Of all the horses (outside of the Egyptian imports) that Henry Babson would add to the breeding program, only to quickly disperse later; *Turfa not only produced similarly to the Babson Egyptian horses but her influence lasted longer than the other non-Egyptian horses, creating a parallel breeding program forever known as Babson-Turfa.  Homer Watson would later express regret over the dispersal of the Turfa horses. I can't think of a stronger endorsement of *Turfa. Well, on second thought, maybe the horses themselves would be the only endorsement a horse lover would need.

Char Turf was sold by the Krausnicks to Marian and Jess Machado, together with Frank Kosek in California. While he sired a small number of registered purebreds, unfortunately, he did not sire any get within the Babson-Turfa breeding group.

***This blog was originally published November 2021***

Oh Saklawi!

Fadl Moniet (*Ibn Moniet el Nefous x Bah Rouse) as photographed by Lee Harrison in 1975

This is Fadl Moniet, a 1973 stallion, sired by *Ibn Moniet el Nefous and out of Bah Rouse (Ansata Abbas Pasha x Bah Roufa), as presented within The Pyramid Society's Reference Handbook of Straight Egyptian Horses, Volume II. Two years old at the time, he was co-owned by Richard J. Veselovsky of The Abracadabra Farm (he also owned *Thabit [Alaa El Din x Kaydahom] and a maternal sibling, Sakrou [*Sakr x Bah Rouse]) and John & Anna M. Clay of Kamars Arabians (they also owned Kamars Sharif [Fabah x Roufina], Bint Fay Roufa [Fabah x Fay Roufa] and Kamars Fay Roufeyna [Fa Nefous x Bint Fay Roufa]).

As it usually happens, questions about one horse, will lead me to another horse and, even more questions! While studying the pedigree of Ansata Alyssa (Ansata Halim Shah x Ansata Raqessa), I noticed that she was bred to Fadl Moniet, producing a daughter in 1998, Bint Fadl Moniet for John and Melinda Bacot of Mariah Arabians. Bint Fadl Moniet is line-bred to Moniet el Nefous, predominantly through the Moniet el Nefous daughter by Sid Abouhom, Mabrouka (the dam of *Morafic and *Ansata Bint Mabrouka), as well as additional crosses to Moniet el Nefous through her sons, namely *Ibn Moniet el Nefous and *Tuhotmos. There are six lines to Moniet el Nefous and even though most of the lines are through the same horses; the line through *Ansata El Wazir offers a little diversity. Remember that Moniet el Nefous was foaled in 1946 and Bint Fadl Moniet was foaled 52 years later, which makes the genetic influence of Moniet el Nefous at almost 22% remarkable. While I don't have a photo of Bint Fadl Moniet, I do know that she was grey, which is a different phenotype, as compared to the chestnut Moniet el Nefous horses (Mabrouka, Mouna, Lubna, *Fakher el Din, *Soufian and *Bint Moniet el Nefous) or the bay Moniet El Nefous horses (*Tuhotmos). Bint Fadl Moniet also carries the blood of several Ansata horses who were influential, while also grey in color, so the likelihood that she could have been influenced in her phenotype more, by horses like Ansata Halim Shah, *Ansata Ibn Halima, Ansata Abbas Pasha, *Ansata El Wazir and *Ansata Bint Bukra is very possible! Regardless of coat color influencing the phenotype, what really got me about this mare is that she has no recorded progeny! Her sire, on the other hand, has 43 recorded descendants (Al Khamsa recognized horses) through the present day. For example, the 2018 stallion, BZ Beau Legends (Alfano Vera Star DMF x Alfano Bedda), bred by Pete & Anja Alfano is a maternal great-great-great grandson of Fadl Moniet. He traces to the Fadl Moniet daughter named SKA Naqa, out of HH Salaila, a *Darrag daughter out of Ramses Balyana (*Ramses Fayek x *Hayat). 

Another interesting aspect to Fadl Moniet's pedigree is his strain. In his time, he was considered Kuhaylan Jellabi by strain, tracing through the 1932 Babson import, *Maaroufa to Jellabiet Feysul but today, through mtDNA testing and the deep study of Lady Ann Blunt's notes, journal and correspondence, we understand that *Maaroufa actually traced to Ghazieh, a Saklawiyah and so, Fadl Moniet is Saklawi, by strain. A study of his ancestors, whether you go out to the 4th generation (great grandparents) @ 62.5% or 5th generation (great-great grandparents) @ 43.75%  reveals a majority Saklawi influence, which is also confirmed by his phenotype and the added length that we see: longer back, longer croup, longer legs and longer head. The Saklawi influence also exists in the sire line, as Fadl Moniet traces to Saklawi I, through his great grandsire, Nazeer. 

While there have been a greater number of straight Egyptian horses who have been bred deeply within the bloodline of Moniet el Nefous, it may seem silly to lament the loss of yet another line-bred Moniet horse. However, Ansata Arabian Stud experienced great success in crossing the Saklawi-influenced stallion, Prince Fa Moniet, onto their predominantly Dahman-influenced mares. The cross of Fadl Moniet with Ansata Alyssa, in my opinion, is an alternative cross to Ansata's successful Prince Fa Moniet cross. If anything, think outcross potential and that's about where I get lost with so many unanswered questions.

***This blog was originally published in September 2021***

There Once Was...

*Ein (Anter x Abla)

 *Ein was one of sixty horses imported from Egypt by Rick Heber, Evelyn Burton and Bill & Janet Lowe, from 1972 to 1981. She was one of seven daughters resulting from the cross of Anter (Hamdan x Obeya) with Abla (Nazeer x Helwa). I wasn't really planning to write a blog about *Ein today, as I was working on a completely different horse but I stumbled upon the Johnny Johnston photo of her and when I googled her name, all I found was listing after listing for "employer identification number". Well, it bothered me so much and now, here you are, reading about this sweet mare, instead of applying for an employer ID number. 

What's really interesting about Ein is her name. "Ein" is really a boy's name and a form of the name "John", like "Ian" (i.e. Sir Ian  McKellen, the actor who played Gandalf in Lord of the Rings) or "Eoin" (i.e., Eoin Colfer, the author of the best-selling book, Artemis Fowl). However, someone from the Arab world may challenge me with the Quranic name, "Ain", meaning "eye", which is also a form of the name "Ein". *Ein was bred by the EAO, so I am thinking that the holier name "Ain", would be more appropriate. 

*Ein was bred to two of the stallions who were also imported by the Hebers, the Lowes and Evelyn Burton. She produced a daughter by *Tuhotmos (El Sareei x Moniet el Nefous) in 1978, who was named Amira Moniet. A year later, in 1979, she produced a son, AK Sahaab by *Moatasim (*Sultann x Neamat). After that, I don't know what happened to *Ein. She was listed in the Bentwood Catalog in the 80's (also, the home of her full sisters, *Nagat and *Somaia) but in the resources that I have available to me, I cannot find record of any progeny, beyond her son and daughter. I don't remember seeing her, when I visited Bentwood in the late 80's but I saw so many horses in that trip, that honestly, I can't say either way.

One of the most interesting horses descending from *Ein is the 1995 grey mare, Bint Amira Moniet, bred by Marcia Gray. She was sired by Almas Lahib, a *Tuhotmos son out of *Eman (Anter x Abla) and out of Amira Moniet, also sired by *Tuhotmos and out of *Ein, a full sister to *Eman. Think of it, double *Tuhotmos and double Anter x Abla. Like her maternal granddam, I am not finding a record of any progeny produced by Bint Amira Moniet. It is unbelievable that a genetic combination like this existed once and no one thought that perhaps, the combination merited preservation? 

My personal connection to *Ein, was through her maternal grandson, El Mon Moniet (*Tuhotmos x Amira Moniet) and the horses bred by Caryn and Mark Rogosky of Windkist Manor in Pennsylvania. Most people, including myself, will think of El Mon Moniet more in terms of the intensification of *Tuhotmos (he was a result of breeding *Tuhotmos back to his daughter), than the fact that he was a grandson of the mare, *Ein. Why is *Ein important? El Sareei and Moniet el Nefous were both sired by Shahloul (Ibn Rabdan x Bint Radia). They were paternal siblings. Hamdan, the sire of Anter, was a full brother to Shahloul. So, you have the breeding of paternal siblings twice through *Tuhotmos and then, through *Ein, you further instensify the line of Shahloul for the third time but through Hamdan, via Anter.  Hamdan and Shahloul were full brothers.

Caryn, a shrewd and intellectually perceptive breeder, combined the genetic resources of El Mon Moniet with a variety of mares carrying the blood of Moniet el Nefous. For example, WK Elsaria Moniet (out of Ghazalaa Tu, a *Tuhotmos daughter, with the Farida tail female line, like Abla also had), WK Sinniq Annah (out of Sonarah, a Pritzlaff program mare, brought forward through Edna Weeks' Hatchie Hill program)  and the full siblings, WK Dalcynea Moniet & WK Porschia Rose, both out of Akira Zarif  (*Fakher el Din x Masada Bellesabah), as well as WK Dariah Moniet, who is out of Sabbah Din a full sister of Akira Zarif.  While someone may argue with me that the horses produced by Caryn are more representative of Moniet el Nefous and less of *Ein, which is a good point; the fact is that the number of horses available today, carrying the blood of *Ein are few in number. The predominant way in which  to incorporate the blood of *Ein is through the combination that exists with Moniet el Nefous, thanks to breeders like Caryn Rogosky, the Weeks, the Milnes, Richard Pritzlaff, among others. However, with that said, I must point out that there are also the horses descending from Bakit TF, a 1984 son of *Waheeb (Aseel x Sammora), out of Amira Moniet and although fewer in number, there is also Halima Batal, a 1992 son of BF Prince Halima (TheEgyptianPrince x Dazeerlima), also out of Amira Moniet. 

In closing, it took a while for me to really "see" and it is through the "eye" of *Ein, that I now understand the genetic value that she represents. Do you dear reader?  It's not just the double or triple *Tuhotmos that we need to focus upon, as I did once but rather, the understanding that the *Tuhotmos blood is only the genetic path that allows her blood to remain relevant in the present day. My hope is that this blog, in some small way, will drive interest in her bloodline, before it becomes too late.

***This blog post was originally published in May 2021 and continues to be lovingly dedicated to Caryn Rogosky, in grateful appreciation for all she has done for the preservation and perpetuation of the straight Egyptian Arabian horse, not only through the many horses she has bred and their contribution, individually, to the straight Egyptian gene pool but also through many years of  significant research,  writing and complete dedication to the Pyramid Egyptian mare, *Exochorda, in addition to championing the horses catalogued as "Sheykh Obeyd". I am an extrememly fortunate person to know and call Caryn, friend and mentor.***

*Darrag

*Darrag (*Tuhotmos x Nagda) as photographed by the late Johnny Johnston

"It is a great error to believe that desert Arab horses should generally be small."- Count Waclaw Rzewuski, from Concerning Oriental Horses and Those Originating From Oriental Strains,  translated by James E. Luck and annotated by Andrew K. Steen

*Darrag was one of  60 straight Egyptian horses imported by Rick & Ann Heber, Evelyn Burton and Bill & Janet Lowe.  A 1970 stallion, *Darrag, was also, one of four *Tuhotmos-sired horses purchased by this group (*Masarra, *Sabah El Kheir and *Zaaki were the other *Tuhotmos get), in addition to importing *Tuhotmos (El Sareei x Moniet el Nefous) himself. However, despite the large group of people involved in his initial purchase and importation, *Darrag appears  in the index within the second volume of the Pyramid Society Reference Handbook as being co-owned by Rick Heber and Charles Hogan. I am not sure dear reader if you will understand how thinking about *Ansata El Wazir last week, inspired me to think about *Darrag this week but let me try to explain it to you. While both stallions share common ground in their sire,*Tuhotmos; the stallion Nazeer establishes a difference between the two horses. *Ansata El Wazir does not carry any Nazeer blood, while *Darrag carries one line through *Morafic, the sire of Nagda (*Morafic x Kaydahom) and it is interesting to contemplate how the added Nazeer blood changes things up a bit. And if the line to Nazeer isn't enough to differentiate one horse from the other, *Darrag has  an additional maternal line to Shahloul (through Moniet el Nefous, the granddam of *Morafic), for a total of 4 lines to Shahloul. However, *Ansata El Wazir's three Shahloul crosses, which are all found in the 4th generation, total 37.5%, while two of Darrag's four lines appear further back-in the 5th and 6 generations, reducing Shahloul's percentage of influence to 34.375%. Can we really count on these percentages as a difference or a similarity? While both horses trace in their sire line to Gamil El Kebir; the real difference between the two is found in their dams. *Darrag is Kuhaylan Rodan by strain and *Ansata El Wazir is Dahman. The influence of horses like Yashmak and Sid Abouhom (neither of which is found in the pedigree of *Ansata El Wazir) had an impact upon *Darrag, as he was a stretchier horse, standing almost 16 hands tall. Even with the one line to Nazeer, *Darrag offered the straight Egyptian breeder a little more diversity, in terms of genotype (87.5% of his pedigree was Nazeer-free) AND phenotype, with his added size. While siring approximately 167 purebred Arabians, I believe that utilizing *Darrag effectively remains one of the missed opportunities of American straight Egyptian breeding. What if both horses had been used within the same program to further concentrate the genetic legacy of a horse like *Tuhotmos, which of course includes Shahloul, while incorporating two very different dam lines and thereby, maximizing the outcross potential that exists between the two horses?  John and Melinda Bacot of Mariah Arabians in Arizona, USA in fact, combined the blood of both stallions on a small scale. They bred Ansata Alyssa (Ansata Halim Shah x Ansata Raqessa), a maternal great-grandaugher of *Ansata El Wazir to *Darrag, producing the grey stallion, Ibn El Darrag in 1992, the bay stallion, EM Alydar in 1995, as well as the 1996 grey mare, Darr Bukra (although her dam is an Ansata Alyssa daughter, therefore,  *Ansata El Wazir appears further back in the pedigree).  The only comfort one can derive is recognizing that *Darrag is still relevant today, represented over the course of 3 generations by 345 Al Khamsa-recognized (tracing to Bedouin-bred horses in all their lines) descendants. That leaves present day Egyptian breeders with some options, to incorporate the unique influence of often overlooked horses like *Darrag into their programs. 

***This blog was originally published in September 2021***

Fa Gazal

Fa Gazal (*Fadl x *Kostrzewa) with her filly foal, Kahla, by Moneyn (Raseyn x Monica)

In 1953, Douglas and Margaret Marshall purchased their first Arabian horse from Dan Gainey. Sired by *Fadl and out of *Kostrzewa, one of the mares imported from Poland by Henry Babson. I found it interesting that Fa Gazal was bred to Fay-El-Dine, a *Fadl son out of *Bint Serra I, as well as the Fay-El-Dine son, Azrak, a 1942 stallion out of *Maaroufa. She produced 2 daughters by these beloved Babson straight Egyptian stallions:  Fa El Gazal by Fay-El Dine, who like her dam, became part of the Gainey breeding program and beautiful Azal, by Azrak. 

The Marshalls bred Fa Gazal to a Kellogg-bred stallion named Moneyn (Raseyn x Monica), producing a filly which the Marshalls named Kahla. She matured into a wonderful broodmare for the Marshalls and was bred to a wide variety of horses, not only of domestic lines but also,  Egyptian too, like the stallion, *Moftakhar, producing the 1961 mare, Bint Il Bint Fa Gazal. 

Bint IlBint Fa Gazal (*Moftakhar x Fa Gazal)

Bint IlBint Fa Gazal matured into a versatile horse for the Marshalls, both as a riding mare and broodmare. Bred to *Morafic, she produced Moreef in 1968 and a daughter, Morabba the following year. I found it interesting that Morabba was bred to Khemosabi, producing the mare, Mokhema, who in turn, was bred to El Hilal, producing Bint Mokhema, who nicked well with Ali Jamaal, producing the beloved mares like Miss El Jamaal, Majesty El Jamaal, Morgaine El Jamaal and Maya El Jamaal. I also found it interesting that Bint Il Bint Fa Gazal was bred to the *Morafic son, *Ibn Moniet el Nefous, producing a daughter, Moniet Gazal in 1972. Moniet Gazal was bred to Prince Charmming, an Ibn Alaa el Din son out of the Shamruk daughter, Egyptian Charm, producing the mare, BVA Bonita Charm. For a non-straight Egyptian mare, she is double Alaa el Din, double *Moftakhar and triple Moniet el Nefous!

Kahla was also bred to Surf, producing a son, Shukron and two daughters, Surur in 1959 and Bint Surf, who became a US Reserve National English Pleasure Champion in 1968. The cross with Surf was so successful that Kahla was also bred to the Surf son, Ibn Surf, producing the stallion, Sur Kahla. Surur was bred to *Morafic, producing a daughter in 1967, Sereh and a son, Surafic in 1968. Bint Surf was also bred to *Morafic, producing a son, Amir Ibn Morafic in 1970.  However, Kahla's most famous offspring would be the 1975 mare Kahlette, by El Hilal. Kahlette was the dam of the Scottsdale Champion Mare, United States National Champion Mare, Canadian National Champion Mare and World Champion Junior Mare, VP Kahlua, sired by Jora Honey Ku. 

Kahla also produced a son by El Hilal, who was named Desert Commander. Kahla was bred to another Egyptian stallion, Mohssen, producing a son named El Kameel in 1972. 

***This blog was originally published in May 2021***

A RESOLUTE HORSE

Azmi (Sid Abouhom x Malaka), who became Nil of Russia

The name, "Azmi", refers to an individual who lives out his promise. Have you ever met anyone who fits this description? More often than not, they are memorable people, never to be forgotten. I have been fortunate over my lifetime to know more than a few people like this, including my brother. These are larger-than-life personalities, who are determined or even, resolute, to accomplishing all that they dream. I wish I were more like them and less like me. I can't seem to get out of my own way! Not so for these iron-willed people, despite life's twist and turns, they remain steadfast to their inner self and all they believe in. To me, they are like a "warrior"  on the "battlefield of life", unwavering as they continue to march forward, overcoming all that gets in the way like complacency, fear, mediocrity, skepticism and such. 

Azmi (Sid Abouhom x Malaka), who became Nil of Russia

For the straight Egyptian stallion, Azmi, his given name was prophetic, as the name foretold the impact he would exert in breeding programs throughout the world. Azmi was a son of Sid Abouhom and out of the Kuhaylah Rodaniyah mare, Malaka (Kheir x Bint Bint Riyala). In his monumental work, The Egyptian Alternative II, world famous author and noted Egyptian Arabian horse breeder, Philippe Paraskevas says, 

"All Bint Riyala's at the EAO, trace back today to the one mare, Malaka, and that makes her sire, the outcross Saklawi Sheifi Kheir of paramount importance." 

Philippe goes on to say that because of Kheir, Malaka carries forward the propensity to produce a horse that gravitates more toward Kuhaylan type, that is, more substance in the form of added bone and width, as well as good movement. At the EAO, he sired the mare Kaydahom, out of Om el Saad. Bred to *Morafic, she produced Kayed, a significant horse for the breeding program of Albadeia in Egypt. 

Azmi (Sid Abouhom x Malaka), who became Nil of Russia

In 1958, Azmi was sold to Russia, where he was renamed Nahr Al Nil and known thereafter as “Nil”. He was considered to be one of, if not the best, Egyptian stallion imported to Russia. He sired 16 horses while in Russia: 7 colts and 9 fillies, who matured to become important horses we know as Plakat, Naina, Polonez, Naslednik and Planeta. The influence of Nil even extends to Poland, through Palas, a son of the Nil daughter, Panel. 

Azmi (Sid Abouhom x Malaka), who became Nil of Russia

Azmi passed away in 1960, 2 years after his importation. It is amazing, really amazing that his influence is as widespread as it is today, considering that he sired only a small number of  horses in his lifetime. In Azmi's legacy, we find the promise his name foretold and the joy that horses carrying a degree of this promise bring to people like you and me.

***This blog was originally published in February, 2021***

Nahaman

Nahaman (Salaa el Dine x Ameera)

A most intriguing horse, Nahaman was a 1989 grey stallion, bred by Dr. Hans Nagel of Katharinenhof, Germany. He was a son of Salaa el Dine and out of Ameera, a full sister to the beloved stallion, *Jamil. It was always Dr. Nagel's plan to use *Jamil, a Hanan son by Madkour I, on the Hanan daughters and he decided to initially test the cross with only a few of her daughters: Ghazala, Amal and Ashraff.  The results were excellent and convinced Dr. Nagel to move forward with a broader use of the cross within his program but tragically, *Jamil died and Dr. Nagel had to continue with another Hanan son, Salaa el Dine, by Ansata Halim Shah. However, I find myself wondering how different the Katharinenhof breeding program would be today, had the influence of *Jamil been more widespread as Dr. Nagel had originally planned, given *Jamil's consistency for siring daughters who became influential broodmares, all over the world. And yet, dear reader, as you will soon read, the ability to sire daughters of great influence was not unique to *Jamil.

Nahaman was impressive, standing approximately 15.1 hands (1.55 cm), his body inspired by longer lines: longer neck, longer back, longer legs. Nahaman also possessed dark pigmentation, one of the better grey-coloured horses, with no white markings of any kind, which I found interesting, as a quick glance at his pedigree reveals the blood of Hadban Enzahi,  whom Dr. Nagel wrote in his book, Hanan, "...a stallion troubled with pigment loss."  Obviously, Hadban Enzahi did not have much influence upon Nahaman, in this respect.

While Nahaman remained with Dr. Nagel for only a brief period of time, his daughter NK Nabeelah (out of Nashua) became a broodmare of great influence for Katharinenhof, insuring that Nahaman would remain relevant in the Katharinenhof breeding program.

NK Nakeebya (NK Hafid Jamil x NK Nabeelah)

The cross of Nahaman with Nashua, which produced NK Nabeelah is an interesting cross, as it intensifies the blood of Salaa el Dine, as Nashua is also a daughter but it also brings in the blood of an additional horse, Lotfeia, increasing the influence of Alaa el Din; while reinforcing the line of Kamla, already present through Madkour I, the sire of Ameera, the dam of Nahaman. Nashua also introduces some outcross blood through El Sareei (Shahloul x Zareefa), the sire of Lotfeia's dam, Bint Kamla. When bred to NK Hafid Jamil, NK Nabeelah produced NK Nakeebya, a mare who physically, appears to be profoundly influenced by Nahaman, as she is a stretchier mare, with a fabulous long neck, well set on a body possessing a strong and smooth topline. Her skin quality is excellent, with dark pigmentation.

Nakeebya has had great influence within the Ezzain breeding program, producing by Ansata AlMurtajiz, the national champion mare of Bahrain, Nabaweyah Ezzain, who is owned by Al Rashediah Stud. Her full sister, Safeyyah, when bred to NK Qaswarah, produced the bay mare, Naseemah AlWard, who when bred to Aneesilnefous, produced Ssafinaz Ezzain, a beautiful filly.

Albaheiah Ezzain (Nooreddine Ezzain x NK Nakeebya)

Albaheiah Ezzain is one of the most beautiful mares that I have ever met and a full sister of Aaliyah Ezzain, both mares sired by Nooreddine Ezzain (Ansata AlMurtajiz x NK Nada) and out of NK Nakeebya, a combination of blood which seems to produce very positively, suggesting what breeders often call a "nick". These two mares are so outrageous in their beauty, that it is only natural to want to repeat the breeding as many times as possible, in the hope of creating an army of beautiful mares that look just like them. In addition to the multiple lines to Ansata Halim Shah present in both horses' pedigrees, the dam of Nooreddine Ezzain, NK Nada, is a daughter of Nashua, who also happens to be the dam of NK Nabeelah, NK Nakeebya's dam.  There's common ground, on both sides of the pedigree. In Dr. Nagel's new book, The Arabian Horse: Nature's Creation and the Art of Breeding, he said, "Normally it works only when both sire and dam, on the female side, are already a good combination. Such situations are, in fact, a very lucky find and would mean that progress can be made very quickly for a breeding program." Although Albaheiah was sold to another breeder in Kuwait, she has produced a beautiful black stallion,  Thettwa Ezzain, who is a proven sire for Ezzain, as well as a gorgeous bay filly named Bahilla Ezzain, both sired by NK Qaswarah.

Aaliyah Ezzain (Nooreddine Ezzain x NK Nakeebya)

Aaliyah inherited the strong attributes of the Nahaman family and yet, for as powerfully built as this mare is, she is so refined and elegant. Her topline is strong and smooth and her longer, nicely shaped neck is well set. She presents a graceful picture of harmony, symmetry and beauty. She also has excellent skin quality, deeply pigmented and the prominence of bone and vein in her face is outstanding. Her muzzle is very fine and delicate and is accentuated with elastic nostrils that when fully dilated, heighten the dramatic features of a desert horse, ready  to overwhelm the senses.

It is mares like these, three generations removed from Nahaman and yet, through the reproductive consistency passed from generation-to-generation, illustrates why a stallion becomes noted as a broodmare sire, as his influence continues to be felt primarily from the mare side of the pedigree.

***this blog was originally published in July of 2019***

Jusera

Jusera (Julyan x Serasabba) as photographed by Dan Ulm

Jusera, a 1978 straight Egyptian mare, was bred by the Babson Farm and owned for most of her life by Cheryl and Pat O'Donnell, having purchased the mare in 1989 from Dan Ulm. Her pedigree, as compared to the majority of straight Egyptian horses is unique. Her sire Julyan, was a son of the stallion Julep (Gulastra x *Aziza) and out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Bint Maaroufa (Fay-El-Dine x *Maaroufa). What I find so interesting now, in 2022, is that Julyan was a pure-in-strain Saqlawi stallion, as both his sire and dam trace to the Saqlawi mare, Ghazieh. At the time that he was alive, horses like *Aziza and *Maaroufa were considered Kuhaylan, as was Julyan. Now through mtDNA, coupled with the meticulous research of material that had been previously unavailable, we understand the ancestry of these horses a little better.

Jusera's dam on the other hand, is the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Serasabba, a Fabah (*Fadl x *Bint Bint Sabbah) daughter out of Serrasab, a Fa-Serr daughter out of Fay Sabbah (*Fay-El-Dine x * Bint Bint Sabbah). No matter how many years pass, this pedigree is still fascinating! Despite the 7 different individuals populating the first 3 or 4 generations of Serasabba's pedigree, it  basically is a 3-horse pedigree: * Fadl (43.75%), *Bint Bint Sabbah (37.5 %) and *Bint Serra I (18.75%). When bred to Julyan, a couple really interesting things happen. A third cross of *Fadl x Bint Serra I is added, the addition of*Fadl's full sister further intensifies the cross of Ibn Rabdan x Mahroussa to almost match the genetic percentage of *Fadl within Serasabba's pedigree; as well as the concentration to the mare, Negma (Dahman El Azrak x Bint Yamama), who appears in the pedigree 6 times (4 of those lines via *Fadl) and an overall influence of almost 18%!

Jusera was a prolific broodmare, having produced 7 foals that are part of the Babson/Brown/Sirecho group:

• DU Echos Jewel, 1981 Grey Mare by Char Echo
• DU Juleps Echo, 1986 Grey Stallion by Serr Echo
• Sir Gemuserr, 1987 Bay Stallion by DU Sir Gem
• Masrih Al Jabbar, 1988 Grey Stallion by DU Sir Gem
• HR Maariners Gem, 1989 Bay Stallion by DU Sir Gem
• HR Tadafa, 1990 Chestnut Stallion by DU Sir Gem
• HR Tali Tiflah, 1992 Bay Mare by DU Sir Gem

 and 9 foals for the Babson/Brown group:

• DU Sheena, 1984 Grey Mare by Princeton Faaris
• DU Serr Julep, 1985 Grey Stallion by Princeton Faaris
• HR Ibn Fadaan, 1993 Bay Stallion by Fadaan
• HR Judaan, 1994 Grey Stallion by Fadaan
• HR Bint Jusera, 1996 Grey Mare by Fadaan
• HR Dafiinah, 1998 Bay Mare by ASF Wadi
• HR Basiir Shariif, 1999 Bay Stallion by ASF Wadi
• HR Wajur, 2001 Grey Stallion by ASF Wadi
• HR Juseras Jusenia, 2002 Grey Mare by Amir Char Serr

From these 16 horses, the legacy of Jusera has grown to include well over 100 descendants.  What is important to remember about any breeding group is that the combination of horses which form the core or foundation of the group, represents many breeders' efforts in maintaining diversity, even if limited in the number of extant horses. It is not so much that these horses exist to justify the existence of the breeding group but rather, as I have said in other blogs, it is all about the development of outcross bloodlines to help safeguard the genetic health of our breed community, by offering choices to incorporate bloodlines that may not have been previously considered.

Pomian

I wasn't planning on publishing a blog this week, it's been really busy and this weekend, I am focused on accomplishing a few house-keeping tasks, as well as catching-up on some reading. However, after watching the 2nd episode of The Book of Boba Fett on Disney+ (if you enjoy the Star Wars movies, I recommend the show), I mindlessly wandered amongst the thumbnails on YouTube and that's where I found the Arabian Essence video of Pomian (Gazal Al Shaqab x Pilar) taken 3 weeks ago (mid-December) at the 2021 King Abdulaziz Horse Center Show, where he placed first in the 10-year old and older stallion class. Bred by Janow Podlaski and now owned by Abdullah Mohammed Suliman Almonia of Alwashem Stud; Pomian is a 2010 stallion and a maternal sibling to Pilarosa, an Al Adeed Al Shaqab daughter, also out of the same mare, Pilar (Fawor x Pipi).  Pomian's maternal line, like that of Pilarosa, traces back to Piewica, a Tersk-bred mare, who was imported by the Albigowa Stud in Poland and is considered the foundress of the famous "P" line of Polish-bred horses. While Pilarosa carries a higher percentage of Egyptian influence (primarily through her sire Al Adeed), Pomian carries a little less than 20%, the majority of which comes through his paternal great-grandsire, Anaza El Farid (Ruminaja Ali x Bint Deena). 

However, what Pomian has that Pilarosa doesn't have are a few old Egyptian bloodlines via the stallion Kaborr+++, the sire of Kajora, the dam of Gazal Al Shaqab. In this part of the pedigree, specifically through the mare Bint Kholameh (Adibiyez x Kholameh), a 1961 mare bred by Philip Wrigley, you will find the Egypt/Blunt blood of the 1924 W.R. Brown-bred stallion, Gulastra (*Astraled x Gulnare) and the mare, Amida (Ibn Yashmak x Ajramieh), their combined genetic influence at approximately 2%, which indicates how far back these horses are in the pedigree.

As far as Polish breeding is concerned, I appreciate the genetic influence of the three WWII era sons of the great Ofir (Kuhailan Haifi x Dziwa) in the pedigree: *Witez II (the maternal great-grandsire of Bint Kholameh), Wielki Szlem (the maternal great-grandsire of Fawor) and Witraz (the maternal grandsire of Banat). While these bay-colored horses are recognized as Kuhaylan, Pomian's back is longer, as are his neck, legs and length of head, indicating a Saqlawi influence (the maternal line of his sire, Gazal Al Shaqab, traces to the 1810 Slawuta-bred mare, Wolozska, identified as Saqlawi by Dr. Edward Skorkowski). 

In the sources that I have available to me, Pomian is a proven sire having been bred to a number of Ekstern daughters, as well as daughters of significant sires like Emigrant, Poganin, Piaff, Emerald J, Piaff, Pilot, Ganges, Eden C, Om El Bellisimo. His many daughters will further his influence in this global community of Arabian horses.

On Friday night, as I clicked one thumbnail after another, unsure of what I was really looking for, that's when Pomian, in all of his Arabian beauty, marched into my life and reached deep into my soul. Unaware of his brilliance only a few minutes prior, from that moment on, the world will never be the same, now that I know he is in it. 

***with many thanks to Arabian Essence, for making these videos available on YouTube. You can't imagine what it does for people like me, in love with the Arabian Horse, as he exists, all over the world.*** 

*Panama of Tersk

I received an email blast recently for the popular stallion, Fa El Rasheem (Fa El Shawan x Virtuosa MLR), bred by Marlene Rieder and now owned by the Dubai Stud. Out of curiosity, I studied the horse's pedigree, searching for Egyptian blood, which he does have, almost 25%, primarily via Shaker El Masri and Ruminaja Ali, however he also carries a fair amount of old Egyptian blood through horses like Hallany Mistanny, *Fadl and *Maaroufa. As I went further back in the generations, I came across a name that I haven't thought of, in a long while: *Panama, a 1964 bay mare, bred by the  Tersk Stud. How I loved this mare! Back in those bygone days, within the pages of Arabian Horse World magazine, her photos made a powerful impression upon me. She was unforgettable. Through *Panama, I learned to appreciate mares who are substantially-conformed, with the proper skeletal and muscular structure to deliver an electrifying brilliance in all their movements. *Panama was purchased, in Holland, by Robert and Donna Stratmore in 1978, who brought her to America and registered her as *Panama of Tersk. Perhaps, that is the name you may know her by? 

*Panama of Tersk was a daughter of the stallion Arax (Amurath Sahib x Angara) and out of the mare, Platina (Priboj x Taktika). In tail female line, she traces to the grey 1879 mare, Sobha (Wazir x Selma), who, although bred by Mahmud Bey-Gezireh of Egypt, descends from Abbas Pasha Stock. The Blunts purchased her in 1891 and brought her to Crabbet for a few years before selling her to Count Stroganov, for use in the Russian Stud at Derkoul. In sire line, *Panama of Tersk traces to the stallion Bairactar, a Bedouin-bred Saqlawi stallion imported to Weil Stud in 1817. Bairactar remains one of the oldest and still active sire lines in the world. Even after 200 years, the reverence that most enthusiasts have for this stallion is profound!

*Panama of Tersk, as stated previously, was a strong-bodied mare, not only through her well-muscled body mass but also in the strength and power of her movement. She was correct, a generously proportioned mare, with a strong and wide back, like a conduit of energy that balanced the tremendous amount of power in her hind end with the freedom, elasticity and fluidity of her front end. Her progeny were successful horses under saddle, no matter the discipline. I always wondered what she may have accomplished in performance, had she been given a similar opportunity but then again, a performance career would have been a sacrifice to her production record, as she produced some very special horses. As a broodmare, she was prolific, with a number of world class daughters to her credit, for example, the Salon daughter, Palitra, who when bred back to her sire, produced the incredible stallion, Ponomarev.

However, for this blog, I wanted to highlight her 1979 daughter, Promises, sired by *Ansata Ibn Halima. Years and years before the beautiful Pilarosa was even a thought in her breeders mind, *Panama of Tersk, encouraged breeders to incorporate Egyptian blood in their programs, in the same way that Tersk included Aswan and Nil in their breeding program. Bred back within Russian bloodlines to the stallion, Patronne (Patron x Nefisa), Promises foaled a daughter in 1986, named Preferred Time. 

Preferred Time (Pattrone x Promises)

What's interesting about the cross with Pattrone is that it introduces another Egyptian line into the pedigree, that of Aswan (Nazeer x Yosreia) and the impact of that bloodline is that Preferred Time carries almost 40% Egyptian blood. Interestingly, she was bred a number of times to the stallion, Furno Khamal (Kapello x Kemla), a German-bred horse who carries 62.5% Egyptian blood, through multiple lines to Aswan, a line to Hadban Enzahi and to the German El Hilal. Preferred Time's daughter by Furno Khamal, Selket Mirror, who incidentally carries a higher percentage of Egyptian blood than her dam does, was bred to the stallion, ZT Shakfantasy, resulting in the important broodmare, Foxbriar Shakita, the dam of Fa El Shawan, who sired Fa El Rasheem. Foxbriar Shakita carries almost 40% Egyptian blood, after adding the influence of Shaker El Masri.

In the sources that I have available to me, I also noticed that Promises (*Ansata Ibn Halima x *Panama of Tersk) also produced a 1984 mare by Salon who was named Promising  and the mare, Ptsarina in 1989 by *Padron.  While the breeding pattern within this family of horses has been to reintroduce Egyptian blood within each successive generation; neither mare was bred back to Egyptian lines, instead, their breeders chose stallions whose pedigrees were concentrated within Russian and Polish lines.  The family remains extant in the present day, as both daughters have produced offspring, insuring that the complete influence of these particular horses stretches farther into the future, to be appreciated and utilized in a variety of ways by tomorrow's breeder.