all for the love of a horse...: Katara, Ansata Nile Echo & The Mare That Once Was

06 February, 2022

Katara, Ansata Nile Echo & The Mare That Once Was

This weekend, at the 2022 Katara International Arabian Peninsula Show, something very interesting occurred within Class 11, the 7 - 10 year old stallions. There were three sons of the late stallion, Ansata Nile Echo (Ansata Hejazi x Ansata White Nile), competing against the 8 other stallions (and each other):

Nabeel Al Rayyan (x Ansata Nefer Isis) - 6th place, with a score of 90.63
Bashir Al Rayyan (x G Shafaria) - 7th place, with a score of 90.06
Mountaser Laffan (x Authentic Monisa) - 9th place, with a score of 89.75

What's also interesting is the genetic similarity that exists between Nabeel and Bashir, as both stallions are out of Prince Fa Moniet (TheEgyptianPrince x Fa Moniet) daughters, with tail female lines tracing back to *Ansata Bint Bukra, by way of *Ansata Bint Misr.

Five generations is what separates both stallions from their maternal great-great-great grandam, *Ansata Bint Misr (Sameh x *Ansata Bint Bukra):

Nabeel->Ansata Nefer Isis->Ansata Nefertiti->Ansata Sudarra->Ansata Delilah->*Ansata Bint Misr

Bashir->G Shafaria->Ansata Sharifa->Ansata Samantha->Ansata Delilah->*Ansata Bint Misr

You need to study the differences which exist in the 4th and 5th generations, populated by the grandams and great-grandams. Nabeel's dam is out of the Ansata Halim Shah daughter, Ansata Nefertiti; while Bashir's dam is out of the Ansata Ibn Shah daughter, Ansata Sharifa. The great-grandams in both pedigrees represent the maternal super forces within the Ansata breeding program: Ansata Delilah vs. Ansata Samantha. Nabeel represents the path via the Ansata Abu Sudan daughter, Ansata Delilah, while Bashir is representative of the *Ansata Ibn Halima daughter, Ansata Samantha.

Ansata Nile Echo's dam, Ansata White Nile, was a Prince Fa Moniet daughter, out of Ansata Nile Gift. In combination with the dams of both Nabeel and Bashir, the influence of Prince Fa Moniet increases to almost 40% in each stallion! Also, Ansata Nile Echo, as a son of Ansata Hejazi (Ansata Halim Shah x Ansata Sudarra), further intensifies the influence of Ansata Halim Shah (also Nefertiti's sire) and Ansata Sudarra (also Nefertiti's dam) to 25% each, within Nabeel's pedigree. On the other hand, Bashir's percentage of influence remains at 12.5% for each horse. There is a certain sense of familiarity that struck me about Nabeel Al Rayyan and at first, I didn't understand. I felt that I had seen this horse before. Remember the gorgeous show mare from the 2019 show season, Nawaal Al Rayyan (Ansata Sokar x Nadrah Al Rayyan)? Nawaal showed on Friday in the second class for 7 - 10 year old mares, Class 8B and placed third, with a score of 92.07. Nawaal's dam, Nadrah Al Rayyan and Nabeel Al Rayyan are maternal siblings, as both are out of Ansata Nefer Isis (Prince Fa Moniet x Ansata Nefertiti), which explains the similarity between both horses.

Mountaser Laffan is a son of the mare, Authentic Monisa, who is a daughter of Monisa Halima (*Ansata Ibn Halima x AK Monisa Moniet) by Nabeel II (Maysoun x AK Bint Nabilahh). What's interesting about Mountaser, beyond his maternal grandam, Monisa Halima, who is significantly influenced by the Moniet El Nefous bloodline, further intensifies this bloodline through Nabeel II (AK Bint Nabilahh is a daughter of *Ibn Moniet El Nefous), Prince Fa Moniet (Fa Moniet is a daughter of *Ibn Moniet El Nefous) and Ansata Nile Jewel (her sire, *Morafic, is a grandson of Moniet El Nefous). Of the 32 lines that make up the 6th generation (great-great grandparents), almost half or 14 lines, trace back to Moniet El Nefous, including the tail female line. Also, on a smaller scale (as compared to Moniet El Nefous) Ansata Nile Echo, through his sire, Ansata Hejazi, also intensifies the line of Ansata Halim Shah to complement with Maysoun, also a son of Ansata Halim Shah.

Congratulations to the breeders and owners of these three magnificent stallions. We are separated by thousands of miles and more than likely, will never meet, and yet, your horses bring joy and happiness into the lives of other like-minded people, teaching us how much more we have in common, despite the distance which separates us.

***with many thanks to Arabian Essence, for making the videos of the 2022 Katara International Arabian Peninsula Show available on YouTube***

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MY FAVORITE WEBSITE

If you want to understand the desert Arabian horse on a deeper level, then you will want to visit Daughters of the Wind, a blog maintained by Edouard al-Dahdah, since 2008. It's my favorite place to visit, on a regular basis. For me personally, the information that Edouard presents is at times so profound, that I find myself weeks, even months later, still thinking about what he has written. I consider him a treasured source of inspiration and for the times that I don't feel like writing anymore, a significant source of encouragement. In one place, you will be able to read of the horses, their heritage; as well as the culture, traditions and the geography of the land, from where they originated. I strongly encourage you to visit his blog to broaden your understanding and deepen your appreciation for the Bedouin-bred horse.

MY FAVORITE WEBSITE X 2

The Horse In Word and Picture is the blog of Rania el Sayed, a very talented photographer, whose equine photography is second-to-none. I still remember when I first learned of Rania, it was all because of the late Dr. Nasr Marei. At the time, Nasr published an article that featured Rania's photography. I was thrilled by the photography and later, "meeting" Rania was one of the highlights of my horse life. I loved her photo of Mangooma and Rania, in an act of kindness never to be forgotten, let me use her photo in my blog. Thanks Rania for all of your support. You'll love Rania's blog and all of the equine topics she covers, including the straight Egyptian Arabian Horse. She really pushes me to think deeply about things that I haven't thought in a while. And you don't have to join Facebook, to read her posts. .

MY FAVORITE BOOK

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently is which book(s) do I recommend? Judith Forbis', The Classic Arabian Horse, published in 1976, is MY FAVORITE BOOK...EVER. Prior to the publication of this book, we really didn't have anything that compiled the history, the bloodlines & breeding practices and conformation (including breed type) of the straight Egyptian horse in one volume. You had to dig through multiple sources, sometimes in languages foreign to one's own, to try and develop an understanding of the Egyptian Arabian horse. So, this is my recommendation to you today, especially if you are just starting, this is the most important book you will ever own. You can find the book on Amazon, previously owned, at a very affordable price.

A NEW FAVORITE BOOK

Many times, I have heard other enthuiasts say, "if only I could get into the mind of this breeder and understand the Arabian horse as he or she does!" Dr. William Hudson, a long-time breeder, weaves together his lifetime of experiences including the latest developments in equine genetic science with the history, art and culture of the Arabian horse. This is not the type of book that you will read, cover-to-cover, in one sitting. You will find yourself turning to this massive 1,500 page, 2-volume set, over and over. If you love Arabian horses and want to understand the breed intimately, on a deeper level, this is the only book you will ever need to own. If you are breeding Egyptian Arabian horses, I urge you to purchase this 2-volume set before you breed one more horse!

MORE FAVORITE BOOKS...

One of the questions that I am asked most frequently is which book(s) do I recommend? Previously, I mentioned Judith Forbis' THE CLASSIC ARABIAN HORSE which is a great introduction to the breed and to Egyptian Arabian horses specifically. But now, you have read that book and are ready to go deeper. So, this is the book that I recommend reading (VOLUME II ) without hesitation. It's fantastic. The depth of this book, within tail female lines, sire lines and strains found in Egyptian (EAO) breeding is not found anywhere else. If you are serious about the Egyptian Arabian horse, whether a breeder, student or enthusiast, you must read this book, at least once!

STILL MORE FAVORITE BOOKS

In the Preface, Dr. Nagel wrote, "Since it is claimed that the Arabian horse breed is one of the oldest on earth, one has to accept that it is also in the crossfire of many opinions which sometimes clash vigorously. There are obviously many doubts and errors, and the advocates of different concepts seem to be not ready to settle on a common stance. It should encourage the reader to think...The refreshing variety of thoughts surrounding this noble member of the great family of horses should not be lost." Whether you agree or disagree with Dr. Nagel, is not what is important but rather, the resulting thought that this book will inspire. I can't even tell you how many times I have read this wonderful book cover-to-cover. It's one of the more provocative books that I have ever read and each time I have read it, a part of the book that had not impacted me previously, will cause me to think deeply for days, weeks and even months at a time. So, dear reader, I recommend this book to you, in the hope that it will inspire you to think deeply about our breed and examine why, you feel the way you do.

"The ideal Arabian type is recognizable at sight to the experienced horseman and novice alike. It falls short of the ideal if it reminds one of another horse or breed. It falls short of the ideal if it is so plain and uncertain of type as to require a sign: 'This is an Arabian horse.' It falls short of the ideal if it is so coarse and masculine as to remind one of a small Percheron, at one extreme, or so highly animated and elf-like as to remind one of a gazelle at the other extreme. The ideal type stands out alone. You know it immediately when you see it."-Ben Hur, from his 1951 Western Horseman article, Type in the Arab

In the summer of 2006, when I discovered Blogger, the last thing on my mind was creating a blog. At the time, I had been participating in a popular Egyptian Arabian horse website and desired to find a website that would allow me to "cut-and-paste" the posts that I had written for future reference. From those humble beginnings, this blog was born. I'm not a professional writer and although I want to say that writing is a hobby; I think it is better to say that I write for the love of the breed. I've had the good fortune to meet a number of horses who are now considered legendary, as well as some really wonderful people, who are equally legendary. Over the years, people have suggested that I charge a subscription fee or pursue paid sponsorships but you know how money changes everything and this blog, after all, is a labor of love. So, there you have it, the story of the blog. Many thanks to the people who make this blog doable, for example, where would I be without any of the photographers, the "visual storytellers" of our breed, who allow me to post their pictures and to the authors of the many books and magazine articles that I have read over the course of 45 or so years, helping to educate a long ago kid, crazy in love with Arabian horses. And finally, an overwhelming amount of gratitude for you dear readers, for coming here to this place, to read, discover and celebrate this common ground we share, all for the love of an Arabian horse.

06 February, 2022

Katara, Ansata Nile Echo & The Mare That Once Was

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