The Strain of Saqlawi Jedran Part 5:

Additional Horses of the Saqlawi strain

Sameh 1924 (El Moez X Samira)

Beside the main families shown in the first four parts of this series some horses of Saqlawi descend with less influence exist in Egyptian breeding. Most important is the sire Sameh  1945 (El Moez X Samira), a head sire at Inshass and later at the E.A.O.. Sameh is a grandson of El Samraa 1924 (Hab El Rih X Bint El Sheik), acquired for Inshass in 1931 from Sheikh Omar Abd El Hafiz from Upper Egypt. In the original herdbook no mention of her strain exists, later we have two different informations, Saqlawi and Koheilan. The origin of El Samraa does not seem clear at all. It is not usual for a horse bred by the beduins and coming from the desert to have names for the parents, especially such "artificial" names like Hab El Rih and Bint El Sheik. Hansi Heck gives us an unusual explanation for this: From the stud of King Imanuel of Italy, based on only asil horses from Abbas Pasha and the desert, pure Arabian horses had been reexported as gifts to Egypt. But nothing of this has been proofed so far. Another, much more plausible explanation is given by Edouard Al Dahdah: Hab el Rih and Bint El Sheik come from a common term to describe a pure Arabian horse used in Upper Mesopotamia: Bint El Rih meaning "daughter of the wind" and Hab el Sheikh meaning "pride of the sheikh" are expressions for asil horese, but it seems that the Egyptian writer of the Inshass herd book, knowing nothing about horsebreeding, just mixed both expression up. El Samraa founded a family of some importance, mainly through stallions, like Sameh and in recent years Classic Shadwan.

Sameh was an excellent broodmare sire, giving substance, movements, necks and toplines. He did not have extreme type, but still most of his daughters were very beautiful, like Serenity Sonbolah, U.S. Champion mare in halter and many others. Therefore America s breeders collected most of them, Imperial had quite a lot in the early 1980s, all of them bred on successfully. In Egypt four of his sons have been used as sires: Ibn Hafiza 1959 out of Hafiza (exp. USA), Sultan 1961 out of Lubna (exp. USA), El Moutawakil 1964 out of Bint Bukra and Aseel 1967 out of Inas. For pictures of Sameh s get click here.

Sameh s sire El Moez (see part 2) and his maternal grandsire El Deree were of the Saqlawi strain, so Sameh s qualities as sire can be clearly understood.

El Deree c.1920 d.b.

El Deree c.1920 was a desert bred stallion imported into Egypt for racing, what he did with good success for King Fouad from 1924 to 1927. After that he became head sire at the royal studfarm Inshass and one of the most important sires in Egypt during the 1930s. Later he was given to the R.A.S.. El Deree is listed in the official studbooks as Saqlawi Saifi/Seifi. According to Dr. Ahmed Al Deri, a Syrian doctor living in Germany, the breeder of El Deree is his father, the late Sheikh Cheder Al Deri, head of the Al Deri clan of the Baqqara bedouins near Deyr Ez Zor. He was bred from his marbat of Saqlawi Saifi horses, he had recieved from the Shammar. The stallion was sold to a horse trader named Nahas, who brought him to Beyrouth. Henry Faraoun bought him and sold him to King Fouad of Egypt. There he got his name after the breeder, El Deree or Al Deri. More under the Baqqara bedouin article. The first to report of the Baqqara was Jens Sannek in his book Wuestenblut/Desert Legacy. The sheikh of the Baqqara in Syria gave him this information and told him about Dr. Al Deri in Germany, the son of the breeder of El Deree. The other informations that are given for El Deree s origin must be doubted. Upton states that he had been presented by Hussein Ibn ad Derri, a Resallin Saba Anazeh to King Fouad, mixing up two different men.

Different information about El Deree s origin exists (Forbis Authentic Arabian Bloodstock). Out of four horse trainers three give Saudi Arabia as origin, but one, Omar Abd El Hafiz, stated: The horse came from the El Jibur tribe and was imported to Egypt by Hussein El Deree/Ad Derri.

Only recently in 2007 Sheikh Daham Abdel Aziz Al Meslat, head of the Jibur tribe, stated that El Deree was "from a pure strain Siglawee Jedrani" and was "one of our horses" and that his grandfather had asked Henry Faroun to personally deliver El Deree to the King of Egypt. If this is right two questions remain: 1st How did El Deree get his name in Egypt? And 2nd: The discrepancy of the strains: Saqlawi Sheifi versus Saqlawi Jedran.

El Deree had one very important son, Sid Abouhom (see more), and some mares, among them most noteable Sameera 1934, mother of Sameh. Her full sister Ghandoura 1933, and also Thouraya 1932, Saada 1931 (dam of Ragaa, going back to Dalal) and El Zabia 1931 had some influence at Inshass. El Zabia of the Koheilan Krush strain is in the female line of Ibn Safinaz.

Badouia c.1915 and her son Kheir 1924

Badouia and her son Kheir have already been mentioned in the article about Gassir. Badouia of the strain of Saqlawi Sheifi came from the Hedschas, from Amir Ali Hussein of Mecca. She became an outcross element in Egyptian lines through her son Kheir 1924 by Ibn Samhan, bred by Ibrahim Khairi Pasha. His son Gassir 1941 and his daughters Malaka 1941 (out of Bint Bint Riyala, KR) and Maysouna 1948 (out of Shams, HE) had some limeted influence.

Mabrouka (Inshass) 1930

Mabrouka (Inshass) 1930 was a gift by King Ibn Saud to King Farouk, her strain only stated as Saqlawi. Her daughter Bint Mabrouka 1947 by Ezzat bred on. Shawky 1963 by Morafic was exported to Germany as was her grandgranddaughter Kaytharah 1975 (Sabeel X Rakia). Her son Khaled El Assuad by Kasr El Nil was a well known black champion and riding stallion in Europe. Khaythara also founded a successful female line in Germany.

                           Kaythara 1975 (Sabeel X Rakia) and her son Khaled El Assuad 1983 by Kasr El Nil

Hind 1942

Hind (Inshass) 1942 was given to King Farouk by King Ibn Saud the same day as Mabrouka. Her sire is noted as Obeyan El Safi, her strain is given as Saqlawi. Through Hanaa 1946 by El Belbesi she established a family worldwide.

Imports by the Blunts of the Saqlawi strain

 Azrek (El Azrak) 1881 d.b., one of the best stallions imported to Crabbet Park

The Blunts imported some horses of the Saqlawi strain directly from the desert, which have some impact on Egyptian breeding through the imports of the R.A.S. to Egypt.

Sotamm, sire of Bint Serra and Kazmeen, was a maternal grandson of Azrek. Azrek was purchased in the desert from his breeder Mashlab, son of Neddi Ibn Ed Derri (Ad Derri, El Deree) of the Ressalin tribe of Sebaa Anazeh. "His stock 1891 superior to any yet bred in this stud" (Lady Blunt).

Hamran 1915 (Berk X Hamasa) was a grandson of Bint Helwa, the broken legged mare (see Part 2). His sire Berk 1903 (Seyal X Bukra) is a Saqlawi Jedran of the marbat of Ibn Ad Derri from the Gomoussa beduins and a direct grandson of Mesaoud. But Hamran has some more Saqlawi lines to offer: Berk is from the tail female line of Basilisk c.1876 and includes the Saqlawi stallions Azrek 1881 and Pharaoh 1876 in his pedigree. Hamran had one son in Egypt, Hamran II out of Durra DS, a mare bred by Lady Anne at Sheikh Obeyd. Hamran II�s daughter Helwa 1940 out of Bint Farida is the dam of Nefisa by Balance, an important mare of the Dahman Shahwan strain.

Basilisk 1876, a Saqlawieh Jedranieh of Ibn Ed Derri of the Resallin tribe, was not a desert bred mare, but still is asil. Purchased for Mr Blunt by Mr Skene (agent for the Blunts and British Consul in Aleppo) in the town of Deyr Ez Zor on the Euphrates, an important town to buy pure Arabian horses, she was bred of entirely Beduin horses. Basilisks dam had been bred by Neddi Ibn Ed Derri (the same as Azrek s breeder) and had been sold to an Abadat (Sebaa Anazeh). And from him she had been stolen by Faris Assaat from the desert. Faris Asaat sold the dam to Abd El Jadir of Deyr in whose possession Basilisk was foaled.

Pharaoh 1876, a Saqlawi Jedran of Ibn Ed Derri of the Resallin tribe, sire a Koheilan Ajuz of the Gomussa tribe of the Sebaa, "a celebrated stallion among the Anezeh tribes as the handsomest colt bred by the Sebaa for twenty years. Purchased through Mr Skene ...from Neddi Ibn Ed Derri, head of the Ed Derri family of the Resallin ...at Beteyen Ibn Mirshids (Sheikh of the Gomussa) camp near Palmyra." The dam of Pharaoh was by a Saqlawi Jedran of Obeyd El Belasi of the people of Ibn Majil of the Ruala beduins.

Pharaoh and Azrek were closly related: Azrek s dam was a half sister to Pharaoh. According to the Blunts in 1881 the Saqlawi Jedran of Ibn Ed Derri were considered to be the best strain of blood remaining to the Sebaa Anazeh, but Ibn Ed Derri only possessed two mares and two colts of this strain.

Jamil (Blunt) 1896

                                        Jamil (Blunt) 1896 (Aziz X Bint Jamila)

Jamil was a Saqlawi Jedran Ibn Sbeyni (Zobeyni, Subayni) stallion bred by Ali Pasha Sherif. He was one of the most important sires at Sheikh Obeyd and was of the sire line of the Abbas Pasha stallion Zobeyni c.1844 (see part1). Jamil is the sire of Jemla/Jamila 1906, the dam of Serra (see part2) and Feyda/Fayda 1910, the dam of Ibn Fayda (see part2). Also Dalal 1910 out of Bint el Bahreyn, the dam of Durra is by Jamil Blunt.

Mirage and Kars

This list of Saqlawi horses at Crabbet Park would be uncomplete without two stallions: Mirage and Kars. Mirage was a Saqlawi Jedran Dalia bred by the Anazeh, sire a Saqlawi Jedran, dam a Saqlawi Dalia. Mirage, born 1919 was brought by King Faisal of Irak to France and presented to the Italian ambassador Signor de Martino and brought by him to England. Bought by Lady Wentworth at Tattersalls in 1923, sold to the USA in 1930. Mirage was not registered in Britain and therefore Lady Wentworth had no option but to sell this fine stallion. Regarding the strain of Mirage Edouard Al-Dahdah found out that he was a Saqlawi Jedran of Ibn Zubayni from the marbat of the al-Dalia family. This family were originally Anazeh bedouins, but became far-traders and settled down in Aleppo. They run camel caravans from Aleppo to Baghdad and also to Saudi Arabia and the Nedj. Still today horses of this marbat exist in Syria. So Mirage is the third stallion of the marbat of Ibn Zubayni to have founded a sire line existing in the Western world until today: Zobeyni through Messaoud and Crabbet Park, Jamil/Gamil El Kebir c. 1870 in Egypt (through Ibn Rabdan, also our stallion Safeen) and Mirage 1919 in the U.S.A..

Exochorda

  Exochorda 1922 (Aiglon X Laila) and Sirecho 1939 by Nasr

Exochorda was a mare of the Saqlawi Jedran strain bred in Egypt of parents from desert stock. Exochorda is not listed in an Egyptian studbook, but has offical export papers and after her exportation into the USA was listed in the American registry. Because of some discrepancies some have doubted the facts about Exochorda and her asil breeding. But it could be shown that all facts can be brought together: Exochorda was born in 1922. Both her parents had been race horses in Egypt, as Exochorda herself. Her sire was Aiglon c.1905, a Dahman Najib of the Ajman tribe. Her dam was Leila, a desert bred Saqlawiyah Jidraniyah Ibn Sudan from Saudi Arabia. Both had been imported into Egypt by Muhammed Ibn Marzuki. Exochorda was called Leila II in Egypt and  raced under the name of Marquita/Marqiba/Marqibah (which meens both hind feet white). She was exported to America in 1931 for Mr Heberman on a ship named Exochorda. Because a Leila already existed in the studbook, she was named for registration after the ship on which she arrived in America. In 1938 at Mr Dickinsons�s Traveler�s Rest Farm she was bred to the magnificant Nasr (Rabdan El Azrak X Bint Yemamah) (see part 3 for Nasr ). Exochorda was sold and foaled a colt the following year: Sirecho, her only straight Egyptian foal (click here for Sirecho and his get).

The Exochorda/Sirecho blood is an outcross element of the Saqlawi line for Egyptian breeding and can be found in the pedigrees of some of the highest decorated show horses of the last decades: Simeon Shai, Al Lahab and Lubna just to name the most important.

                                 Sameh 1945 (El Moez X Samira)

                                   El Deree c.1920 d.b.

                                     Kheir 1924 (Ibn Samhan X Badouia)

                           Shawky 1963 (Morafic X Bint Mabrouka)

                                Hanaa 1946 (El Belbesi X Hind)

                                     Azrek 1881 d.b.

                            Pharaoh 1876 d.b.

                            Basilisk 1876

                               Kars 1874 d.b., a Saqlawi Jedran of Ibn Sbeyni of the Fedaan Anazeh. Imported by the Blunts to England and later sold to Australia. His blood is not found in Egyptian breeding. Kars had been the personal mount of Mahmud Aga, a Kurdish chief of an irregular cavalry force raised in the northern desert during the Russian war, who obtained him from his breeder as a two year old. During the war in Armenia 1877 Mahmud Aga rode Kars where nearly every other horse perished. Twice hit by a bullet and afterwards abandoned on the road. Kars appeared so much exhausted that he was left behind on the retreat from Armenia to Aleppo, but he got up again and followed his master. The Blunts bought him January 1878 in very bad condition from his owner, who himself was "at the point of death" .

                            Simeon Shai 1984 (Ra�adin Royal Star X Simeon Safanad) Triple Crown Winner 1991 (Scottsdale, U.S. and Canadian National Champion Stallion) and World Champion Stallion in Paris

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