Nehaya: Off the Richter Scale

Nehaya (*Ansata Ibn Halima x *Hoyeda) as photographed by the late Johnny Johnston

Nehaya, a bay mare bred by Gleannloch Farms, was foaled in 1971.  She was a maternal sibling to Imperial Egyptian Stud's stallion, Moniet el Nafis and the *Ibn Hafiza daughters Zaenap and Foula, among other horses. However, what's really interesting about Nehaya, is found within the pedigree of her dam, *Hoyeda, who was line bred to Moniet el Nefous, through her Sid Abouhom daughters: Mabrouka and Mouna. Moniet el Nefous is significantly represented in *Hoyeda's pedigree, approximately 37.5%. When you consider the multiple sources of El Dahma in Moniet el Nefous' ancestry,  you will appreciate the "common ground" that was established when she was bred to *Ansata Ibn Halima, who traces to El Dahma in his matriline.  Furthermore, we can add additional Dahman sources through Bint Sabah (think Bukra) that come by way of Layla, the dam of Sid Abouhom, a stallion who wields an equal weight of influence as Moniet el Nefous exerts in Hoyeda's genetic mix. The final complementary match between *Hoyeda and *Ansata Ibn Halima is through the use of Nazeer, the sire of both  *Morafic and *Ansata Ibn Halima. If you are a believer in coat color indicating the majority influence of a particular ancestor, then I wonder over the bay coat color of Nehaya, whose immediate ancestry is populated by more grey and chestnut horses, as compared to bays. The few bay horses within the first 5 generations are the mares: Halima, Bint Sabah, Bint Samiha and the stallion, Kazmeen.

Nehaya, who was owned by Bentwood Farm, was a proven broodmare, producing foals by *Ibn Moniet el Nefous (AK El Hameed & JKB Bint Nehaya) and NaIbn Moniet (AK NaMoniet & AK Safara). However, it is her daughter, Zahara Keela by TheEgyptianPrince, who provides a "flashback" for the 3-horse pedigree of *Hoyeda.  TheEgyptianPrince's pedigree, like that of  Hoyeda's pedigree, can also be summarized in 3 horses: 50% Nazeer + 25% Sid Abouhom + 25% Moniet el Nefous, so breeding both horses intensifies the ancestral elements already present in *Hoyeda's pedigree. Dr. Joseph "Jody" Cruz, while visiting Bentwood Farm all those years ago, had the opportunity to see many of the noteworthy Bentwood mares but it would be one mare that made a significant impression upon him.

"Nehaya really stuck in my mind. Of course, she was not to be bought. But down the road I found her daughter Zahara Keela which is another long story in and of itself.  I was able to finally lease Keela and bred her to Richter and produced Nehaya MH. She was a 'drop dead,' gorgeous filly." 

The cross with Richter MH (El Halimaar x Fasarra) further intensified *Ansata Ibn Halima through his sons, El Halimaar and El Hilal, with an alternative source of Moniet el Nefous, this time through *Tuhotmos, her son by El Sareei. 

Staar of Egypt (Imperial Mistaar x Nehaya MH)

The line of *Hoyeda to Nehaya to Zahara Keela and then, through her Rancho Bulakenyo-bred Richter MH daughter, Nehaya MH, remains dynamically relevant for straight Egyptian breeders, through Nehaya MH's 2007 Imperial Mistaar daughter, Staar of Egypt MH and her 2013 daughter Fashan Staar MH, sired by the late *Asala Hafid Nahman. Both mother and daughter were exported to Israel. This pushes the legacy of Nehaya even further in the world, well beyond the American pastures that she once knew.

Gulastra, Mesaoud & Egypt

"...but man’s insatiable curiosity often overwhelms him and he destroys forever the original.” - Carl Raswan

Gulastra was sired by a son of the Ali Pasha Sherif-bred, Mesaoud, out of a daughter of the Ali Pasha Sherif-bred, *Ghazala. By virtue of his pedigree, he represents 62.5%  of Ali Pasha Sherif's breeding program. The only horses in his pedigree who were not part of Ali Pasha Sherif's breeding program are the mares Queen of Sheba, the dam of *Astraled (25%) and *Rose of Sharon, the dam of *Rodan, the sire of Gulastra's dam, Gulnare (12.5%).

Gulastra, a 1924 chestnut stallion, appears way back in the genetic histories of uniquely bred modern horses and therefore, our understanding of them and even, our appreciation for them, is not on the same level as the present day Arabian we may be more interested in and, who possibly led us to Gulastra. These long ago horses somehow, through no fault of their own, have become "just-a-name" within the pedigree and we miss knowing the colorful history that an ancestral horse like him may possess.  In 1924, the state of reproductive technology was nothing like it is today. The mare traveled to the stallion, for breeding. It is significant that Gulastra, over his lifetime, sired 117 horses for breeders like W.R. Hearst, General J.M. Dickinson, Howard Marks and Bazy Tankersley. As a matter of fact, Gulastra was the stallion that Bazy Tankersley received, when she sent Indraff to Howard Marks. Gulastra was 29 years old, when he traveled by airplane, from California, to Bazy Tankersely's farm outside of Washington D.C. Gulastra produced 11 foals for Al-Marah, before his death, the following year.

In the information and photographic history that has been published about Gulastra, we know him to have been an athletic horse, who was trained under saddle in all 5 gaits (walk, trot, canter, running walk and the rack). Gulastra's son,  Kolastra (out of *Kola), was accepted into the appendix section of the Tennessee Walking Horse Studbook. 

In the late 30s, General J.M. Dickinson, purchased Gulastra from W.R. Hearst. He bred Gulastra to *Aziza, one of the Egyptian mares that W. R. Brown had imported in 1932. She produced the stallion, Julep in 1939. It is through Julep, that the sire line of Mesaoud exists in straight Egyptian breeding, through his son, Julyan (out of the straight Babson Egyptian mare, Bint Maaroufa). In turn, Julyan sired 4  straight Egyptian sons but only 2 of the 4 sons would further the Mesaoud sire line in straight Egyptian breeding:

• the 1968 stallion, El Reata Juan (out of Mist-Aana)
• the 1971 stallion, Fadaan (out of Mist-Aana)

I found it really interesting that it is through the Hallany Mistanny daughter, Mist-Aana, that the sire line of Mesaoud survives in straight Egyptian breeding; as it is through Mist-Aana's daughters, Masada Saafaana, Julyana, Julyanne and Bint Mist Aana, that Hallany Mistanny himself, survives in straight Egyptian breeding (as part of the Babson/Brown breeding group). Is Mist-Aana the "unsung heroine" of this story, in terms of preservation?

Through El Reata Juan's approximately 28  Al Khamsa recognized descendants, the majority of which were foaled prior to the new millenium; I found 6 stallions who were foaled in the year 2000 or later. I don't know if any of these horses have remained as stallions and what their siring records may be, in order to determine the real opportunities to further the sire line in SE breeding, through the branch of El Reata Juan. 

Through Fadaan, the opportunities, as compared to El Reata Juan, are significantly less. Out of 10 descendants (all, with the exception of 2 stallions were foaled in the 1990s) there is only 1 stallion born in the 2000s. Again, not sure if this horse remained a stallion and what his siring record may be. We may learn that saving the Mesaoud sire line through Fadaan may already be too late.

In any case, whether 1, 2 or even 3 horses, the Mesaoud sire line, within straight Egyptian breeding, is in seriously grave danger of completely disappearing from what already is, our small gene pool of Egyptian Arabian horse breeding.

 

In the old days, the Mesaoud sire line was recognized as the Zobeyni sire line but a recent book published by Edouard Al-Dahdah, together with Kate McLachlan and Moira Walker, has established, through the translation of the 1860 Abbas Pasha sales list (and Mesaoud's correct pedigree), that the sire line is not Zobeyni as previously believed, it is that of Ghadir, the chief breeding stallion of Abbas Pasha, who was purchased at the 1860 auction by the Studmaster of the Weil Stud, for King Wurttemburg. Many of the qualities that were celebrated in Ghadir like the length of neck, the fineness of the throatlatch (mitbah), the strong and smooth topline, the deeper sloped shoulders, the quality of the mane and tail hairs and the noble head are also, the qualities that we see in Gulastra. That's why I love this particular photo of him, as we see these characteristics visually expressed in Gulastra. It then makes more sense to me, that is, the switch from Zobeyni to Ghadir.

Whether Gulastra traces to Zobeyni or Ghadir, doesn't change the grim reality for the sire line, within straight Egyptian form. I hope that I am wrong and that in the days to come, I will learn that there are more stallions available possessing this sire line, dramatically increasing the opportunities to rescue the sire line from the extinction it is now facing.

***If it wasn't for Laszlo Kiraly, I am not sure that I would be thinking of the Mesaoud sire line in straight Egyptian form. It is his passion for this bloodline that initiated the curiosity and fired the enthusiasm within me. Thank you Laszlo and this blog is dedicated to you.***

If Wishes Were Horses

We are approximately two weeks away from the 2022 edition of the Pride of Poland Show and Sale. There are 46 horses consigned to the sale; 21 horses (4 stallions, 17 mares) will be part of the Pride of Poland sale on Sunday, August 14th, while the balance of 25 horses (3 stallions, 22 mares) will be sold in the Summer sale, on Monday, August 15th. Have you had a chance to review the online catalogue? It's a great offering of horses this year.  You can find the catalogue here. Arabian Insider has also uploaded videos of each horse, approximately one minute of video footage per horse, to their YouTube channel. You can find the Pride of Poland playlist here. 

I look forward to the release of the Pride of Poland sales offering each year.  With the loss of  Ekstern still weighing heavily on my heart, I took note of the Ekstern granddaughters, which are many. Please consider one of the more unique expressions of Ekstern, that is, the mare Egiria, sired by the late Ekstern son, Esparto. Egiria differs from the majority of the Ekstern grandaughters, as Ekstern makes an impact through the sire side of the pedigree, as compared to the maternal side of the pedigree. I also found the young mare Petrona interesting, as she is sired by the Ariela Arabians stallion, Abyad AA (Nader al Jamal x Al Amal AA), out of Polka, an Ekstern daughter. 

The level of quality in this year's sale is impressive, for example, I found it challenging to get past the Ganges daughter, Eulerta (I really liked her), the Pomian sired Pentanea, out of the *Ecaho daughter, Penta, the dark bay Emblema, sired by Chimeryk (he's in the Summer Sale too) out of an Al Maraam daughter or the Pogrom daughter, Wygodna. What wonderful mares! The following 5 mares are my personal favorites, that is, these are the horses who captured my attention and the horses that I would bid on, if I were attending the Pride of Poland sale as a prospective buyer. How many generations would it take for a breeder to develop a similar level of quality in their breeding program? The  Pride of Poland sale represents an opportunity for a new breeder to quickly establish a program, at a level of quality that would have taken multiple decades to  develop. 

Waranga is a 2009 QR Marc daughter out of Wilga, an Ekstern daughter and she is consigned to the Pride of Poland sale. She, like many of the horses that I have picked, is strong of body. Her neck is long, well-set, with a nice and clean underline. She is deep through her heart girth.  A proven broodmare, she is in foal to Empire, a grandson of Laheeb. The opportunity to combine two of my favorite horses in a forthcoming foal, was too good to pass up.

Baskonia, bred by Janow Podlaski Stud, is a 2015 Palatino daughter out of Bellisa, a Poganin daughter and yes, a Laheeb grandaughter. Palatino carries Egyptian blood and combined with Laheeb, insures that the percentage of Egyptian blood stays around 20% in Baskonia. In her matriline, she traces to the celebrated mare, Bandola, the dam of the stallion, *Bandos. She is a tall mare, which I prefer. Again, an opportunity  to combine two favorite stallions in one pedigree. Baskonia is consigned to the Pride of Poland sale.

Piekna Dama is consigned to the Summer Sale. She was bred by the Michalow Stud. She is a 2011 Pegasus daughter (Gazal Al Shaqab combined with *Eukaliptus) and out of Piekna Pani, an Ekstern daughter. She is massively built, with an amazing amount of substance and yet, does not lose her classic elegance, as wrapped in a rosewater coat. 

A long, long time ago, I wanted to breed my straight Egyptian mare to *Sanadik El Shaklan. I remember speaking with the late Sigi Siller, who explained that *Sanadik El Shaklan was no longer available at stud but after reviewing all the photos that I had sent her, she felt that Om El Shahmaan was a better choice for my mare. Unfortunately, life takes unexpected twists and turns and I never bred my mare to Om el Shahmaan. Emandilla, consigned to the Pride of Poland sale is a 2010 daughter of Om El Shahmaan, out of Espadrilla, a Monogramm daughter out of  a Eukaliptus daughter. Since Monogramm is the sire of Ekstern, having him in the pedigree makes up for not having Ekstern. At the end of the video, she walks alongside her handle, no halter, no lead rope. I bet she is blessed with the kind and generous Om El Shahmaan character.

Effie,  consigned to the Summer Sale, is my favorite mare, of either sale. She is a 2014 Shanghai EA daughter out of El Ghazala, an Ekstern daughter out of the beloved Palas daughter, Emigracja. Effie is related to Emandilla, as Effie's dam, Emigracja, is the granddam of Espadrilla, the dam of Emandilla. When I saw Effie's photo for the first time, I knew that no matter how I sliced and diced the list, she would be among my remaining favorites. She is everything that I look for in a horse, with substance, a strong, wide back, amazing pigment and big black eyes. She has great movement, not only with power driving her hind end forward but also freedom in her shoulders, which allows her to maximize her movement. Watching her at liberty is like seeing Ekstern, all over again. 

**Many thanks to Arabian Insider for making all of the Pride of Poland videos available on YouTube. You have no idea of the joy that you bring into another person's life, through the work that you do. I am grateful.**

Laheeb: The Flame Still Burns

This week, between the floods, the heat and the wildfires, on top of the war in Ukraine, the rising costs of just about everything and the spread of the monkeypox virus, the evening news broadcast can crush the joy right out of a man's heart. It's very difficult to be happy when so many people around the world are suffering. And then, when all hope seems lost, out of nowhere, the Arabian "dream horse" materializes and through his unbelievable beauty, the problems of this world are temporarily forgotten. So it is for me today and an Arabian Insider video of the 16-year old stallion, Kabsztad (Poganin x Kwestura), one of the lots consigned to the 2022 Pride of Poland sale, to be held in two weeks (August 14th and 15th).  I was surprised to find a mature, proven stallion of his quality offered in the sale. To me, this is the kind of horse a breeder keeps, having spent decades just trying to create him.

Bred and owned by Michalow Stud, Kabsztad is a Laheeb grandson and 25% of his almost 33% Egyptian blood comes via Laheeb. Through Kwestura, there are two lines to Aswan and one line to Nil. Also through *Kwestura, the matriline goes back to Gazella, one of four desert-bred mares purchased by Count Julius Dzieduszycki for his Jarczowce Stud. Gazella founded one of the most influential families in Poland. A horse like Kabsztad underscores her continuing influence in Polish breeding programs.

As wonderful as the Gazella matriline is, in phenotype, it is my belief that Kabsztad is strongly influenced by his sire, Poganin and therefore, his grandsire, Laheeb. Like his sire, he is strong of body, close-coupled, with a smooth topline. His chest is broad, his heart girth is deep and the ratio of a long forearm to a short cannon is almost perfect. However, I would be amiss if I didn't point out that Kabsztad has a little more stretch, a little more length in his flowing lines (that neck, oh my), as compared to his sire and that stretchiness has to come from somewhere, perhaps the impact from the fabulous chestnut mare, *Kwestura, a Monogramm daughter and paternal sibling of the recently deceased stallion, Ekstern.

Many people over the years have also been enchanted by Kabsztad's strong, correct conformation in addition to his overall classic beauty, as the stallion has earned an impressive show record, over the course of 12 years, with many Championships in several countries across Europe, as well as in the Middle East. He was shown at the Salon du Cheval in three World Championships: 2011, 2012 and 2017, earning  a top ten in the Senior Stallion Championships each year. 

Recently, I came across a poem by Chief Tecumseh, a great Warrior Chief of the Shawnee nation. He commands us to be the hero in our lives, to live in a way that brings beauty to all we do. Horses like Kabsztad, if we let them, open up our minds and hearts to what is really possible in life, when we free ourselves from the self-inhibiting limits we impose on just about everything, even breeding horses. A beautiful horse, approaching a level of perfection previously believed to be impossible, is a horse to be celebrated, for we have bred, as breeders, the very best horse our breed has to offer. It is the breeders of the Arabian horse who really, are the every day heroes that Chief Tecumseh alludes to in his poem and whom, for people like me, have bred horses who have the power to pull us out of our darkest moments, to inspire us with their beauty. It is for them, that this blog is dedicated. 

***Many thanks to Arabian Insider for the video of Kabsztad, uploaded to your YouTube channel.***

Wadad Zamani

My favorite horse at this year's Menton show was the Laheeb daughter, Wadad Zamani. I was so impressed with her quality, that  I wrote a blog about the mare. 

Imperial Imdal+ is one of the more important horses in her pedigree. He represents almost 40% of the pedigree, as he is the sire of Laheeb, Al Maraam and Luiba. Ansata Imperial (Ansata Ibn Sudan x Ansata Delilah), the sire of Imperial Imdal+ is also the sire of Imperial-Alamonra, increasing his influence to almost the equivalent percentage that a grandsire would contribute. We can say something similar about *Ansata Ibn Halima, who represents 12.5% of the pedigree, about that of a great-grandsire. However, *Morafic appears with more frequency than any other horse, approximately 17 times and 18% influence, which is significant, as his position in the pedigree fluctuates between the 6th generation and the 10th generation. 

Wadad Zamani, via the mares in her matriline, like Ramses Nagdia, Om el Saad and Yashmak, goes back to one of the most powerful and enduring dam lines in our breed: Rodania, by way of her great-great grandaughter, Bint Rissala, one of two Rodania line mares purchased from Crabbet. However, Wadad Zamani is grey in her coat color and the Rodania matriline exerts itself a little differently than it would if the mare were chestnut.

The blood of Imperial Imdal+, brought forward by Laheeb and further intensified with  the multiple lines to *Morafic, only to be combined with the strongest mare line in all of Arabian horse breeding - Rodania, helps to explain her strong, correct body. While the video captures her as a much younger mare (8 years ago), she has only grown more beautiful with age, enhanced with that classic, dry elegance which identifies her as a living daughter of the desert.

Ansata - The Key of Life

*Ansata Ibn Halima (Nazeer x Halima) as he appears in the video production, Ansata - The Key of Life

The famous video, produced by Bill Stokes Associates for Ansata Arabian Stud, circa 1981, The Key of Life has been archived by Texas Archive of the Moving Image . If you look to the sidebar, on the right side of the blog web (not mobile) page, all the way at the bottom, you will find the video embedded for you to watch or, you can watch it on the Texas Archive of the Moving Image website. All these years after the death of *Ansata Ibn Halima, *Ansata Bint Bukra and Ansata Abu Sudan, it is a real blessing to be able to watch video footage of these horses. Thanks Texas Archive of the Moving Image!

Imperial Baedrah

Imperial Baedrah as photographed by Christine Emmert

Imperial Baedrah is a 2002 rosewater-coloured mare, a daughter of Imperial Baarez (PVA Karim x BB Ora Kalilah) and out of Imperial Safama (*Ibn Safinaz x Imperial Imwasama). In her matriline, she traces to the celebrated 1946 RAS mare, Zaafarana (Balance x Samira) through the Albadeia breeding program: *Wadeea (by Zahi)-> Ferial (by Anter)-> El Ameera (by Nazeer). However, the matriline to Zaafarana keeps going all the way back to Bint Helwa, whom Lady Anne Blunt had purchased from Ali Pasha Sherif. Zaafarana was celebrated in her time for her brilliant action and presence. She must have been electrifying, when moving. She captivated all who watched her, including Judith Forbis who said, "she was a mare of exceptional quality and brilliant action."

As treasured as the line of Zaafarana is, Imperial Baedrah's pedigree also combines ancestral elements in a very unique way. For example, she has two lines to Ansata Imperial (Ansata Ibn Sudan x Ansata Delilah), one line on the paternal side (6.25%) and the other on the maternal side (12.5%). However, what is interesting about these two crosses is that the matriline of Ansata Imperial runs back to Bukra, through the Sameh daughter, *Ansata Bint Misr. On the other hand, *Wadeea, the dam of Imperial Imwasama, is sired by Zahi, a Sameh grandson, out of the maternal sibling of *Ansata Bint Misr, Bint Bukra, a 1957 Bukra daughter by Nazeer (not to be confused with *Ansata Bint Bukra). This is one of several crosses which I find interesting, that is,  to combine different sources of Bukra in one horse, in combination with also different sources of Sameh blood (through *Ibn Hafiza and *Ansata Bint Misr), which helps to balance the multiple lines of Nazeer blood, as does the sources of Gassir (Kheir & Badia) and Seef (Mashour x Elwya).

Basharah Al Kamar MH, as photographed by Christine Emmert

Another unique example would be the use of the revered strain of Kuhaylan Kurush. Through both *Ibn Safinaz's and Sabeel's (Lancer Sahm's sire) matriline, the strain  is brought forward in Imperial Baedrah, only to be intensified with Dr. Joseph "Jody" Cruz's breeding program, who, over the years, incorporated this highly sought after strain through the blood of the mare, BintAzizaPrincess, whom Jody had purchased from Azali Arabians. Both stallions, Bashar Al Kamar MH and Nour Al Kamar MH  combine the strain (through their dam, Binte Aziza MH), while intensifying the influence of *Ibn Hafiza through his son, Abenhetep. Additionally, the lines to Maar Hala complement the multiple sources of *Ansata Ibn Halima (through his grandson, Ansata Imperial), as well as the Babson sources through both Fa Noufas and Aroufina. In 2015, bred to Nour Al Kamar MH, Imperial Baedrah produced a gorgeous grey filly aptly named Nourah Al Kamar MH and the following year, 2016, Imperial Baedrah produced my favorite, an exquisite bay filly, Basharah Al Kamar MH by Bashar Al Kamar MH.

I found the use of Moniet el Nefous also interesting, through her son: *Ibn Moniet el Nefous  and daughters: Mabrouka, Bint Mona and *Bint Moniet el Nefous. Most of these crosses appear in the 6th, 7th and 8th generations of Imperial Baedrah's pedigree, so it is impressive to consider that as far back as these horses are, the percentage of influence of the bloodline, combined,  is approximately 22%! I want to believe that the refined elegance that we observe in Imperial Baedrah and her daughters is due to the presence of Moniet el Nefous; while her spirit, that charismatic joy which is a vibrant part of Imperial Baedrah, a living memorial to the memory of Zaafarana!