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| A Carl Raswan photo of Aana (Fay-El-Dine x Fa Saana) taken in 1954 at the Babson Farm. Homer Watson is holding Aana. Raswan said that Aana was one of the two finest mares he saw and photographed that year. |
The 1945 rosewater mare, Aana, was out of Fa Saana, a full sister to the Babson mares, Habba and Fa Habba. Through Fa Saana, Aana traced to *Bint Bint Sabbah and from her, to El Dahma. It's interesting to consider that in the old days, the only Saqlawi blood in the pedigree belonged to *Bint Serra I, her paternal granddam. *Fadl, the sire of both Fay-El-Dine and Fa Saana, was recognized as a Kuhaylan Jellabi strain stallion. Today, we understand the ancestry of these horses differently and Aana's pedigree is predominantly Saqlawi strain-influenced.
Aana, in her breeding career for the Babson Farm, produced 3 daughters, all sired by *Fadl: Fa Aana (1949), Afirah (1953), Saana (1954) and 2 sons: Fa-Rab (1951 by *Fadl), Bah Saan (1960 by Fabah). Over the years, the meaning of the name, Aana, was defined as "grace" and "elegance," however these are Finnish language translations; the traditional Arabic meaning is different and speaks specifically of the night-time hours.
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| Aana (Fay-El-Dine x Fa Saana) |
Aana was one of four Babson Farm mares leased by Ansata Arabian Stud in 1962. She was bred to *Ansata Ibn Halima but unfortunately, she did not produce a foal by him. One of the other mares leased by Ansata was Fa-Habba, who settled to *Ansata Ibn Halima, producing Falima, the foundress of the beloved Ansata Nile family. Imagine if the breeding of Aana with *Ansata Ibn Halima had yielded a foal? Would we today discuss the spectacular horses who descended from Aana, as we do with the Nile horses? One of Judith Forbis' all-time favorite mares, she once said, "Aana was an exceptionally fine and beautiful mare of wonderful type." When Walter Schimanski visited the Babson Farm for the very first time, he was immediately impressed by the quality of the Babson mares. Not only were the mares beautiful, they were so desert-like too. Of all the mares he saw in that particular visit, one mare stood out from all the others: Aana. Walter said, "she was beautiful, with scope and balance, chiseled, dry bone, a beautiful head with the kindest, most expressive eyes-a sensitive, caring face."
By the time Raswan had taken the photo of Aana, John Rogers had completed the purchase of and imported the stallion, *Serafix (Raktha x Serafina) from Crabbet Park, to his ranch in California. John Rogers had been breeding and raising Arabian horses since 1950. John Rogers had assembled a dynamic collection of horses from Saudi Arabia, Poland, England and Spain. He was proud of his horses and the accolades that his horses received in and out of the show ring. When Carl Raswan knocked on John Rogers' door in 1954, John had raised three foal crops, with several of the foals maturing into show champions. To John Rogers, the championships his horses earned, proved the success of his breeding program.
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| John Rogers with his stallions, the chestnut *Serafix (Raktha x Serafina) and the bay Natez (*Witez II x Nafalla) |
Carl Raswan on the other hand, had been employed by W.K. Kellogg in what was a groundfloor opportunity to set up Kellogg's first ever Arabian studfarm, which included the purchase and importation of horses from Crabbet Stud, the same farm which had bred John Rogers' *Serafix. Unfortunately, Carl Raswan had failed to fully understand the pride John Rogers felt for his horses. No one, regardless of their life experiences, was going to imply that there was a better method to breeding Arabian horses, than the way in which John Rogers was already breeding them. However, Raswan persisted and it got to the point when Rogers could no longer remain composed, listening to a theory spun by a man who had never bred a show champion. That was Raswan's failure, that he did not immediately recognize what was important to John Rogers and temper his delivery to focus on the accomplishments earned by Rogers' horses. Its interesting to consider that both men shared more in common and that the visit did not have to end in the manner in which it did. With carefully chosen Arabic words, fully conveying the extent of his anger, a spicy John Rogers asked Raswan to leave his property at once, never to visit again. Oh! The passion these horses ignite in the hearts of those who love them!
***Thank you to the following sources:
The Babson INFLUENCE: a Retrospective published by The Institute for the Desert Arabian horse
The Arab and His Horse by Carl Raswan
Authentic Arabian Bloodstock II by Judith Forbis
The Arabian Horse Breed Journal, September 1976
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