A mare at Sheykh Obeyd stud
Linda Cottle from New Zealand shared this treasure of a photo on the page of Rehan Ud Din Baber on Facebook. The photo was taken by her grandfather, a soldier from New Zealand who visited the Sheykh Obeyd Stud of Lady Anne Blunt during World War One.
The photo shows Lady Anne Blunt and a mare Cecil Covey told Linda Cottle was Fasiha. History comes alive.
What a family heirloom!
Wow This mare is very short coupled she has alot of great points-i love these photos of such a beloved Lady.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful photo of a lovely mare! Is this the Fasiha it is believed to be? http://www.allbreedpedigree.com/fasiha6
Yes I do believe this to be Fasiha, I wrote to Cecil Covey many years ago and sent him a copy of the photo and he wrote back to say he thought the horse was Fasiha 🙂
Cheers, Linda Cottle
Thank you for visiting the website!
Hello, Linda,
Would you be interested in furnishing a high resolution scan of that photo and any background information you care to share to the Arabian Horse Archives? arabianarchives.org
You can contact me at arabianhorsearchive@gmail.com
Thanks!!
This can’t be Fasiha. The dates don’t work.
Lady Anne Blunt’s herdbook records say that Fasiha died in the winter of 1914-15, without giving an exact date.
Lady Anne left her home in Egypt at Sheykh Obeyd Garden and returned to England in May of 1914, before the outbreak of World War I (see Lady Anne’s journal entry, J&C May 11, 1915: “In a week it will be a year since I left Sh. Obeyd”). Lady Anne did not return to Egypt until October of 1915 (see J&C, Oct. 26, 1915). We know the photo was taken during the war from the external evidence of its provenance and also the internal evidence of it showing Lady Anne and a soldier in uniform. In Lady Anne’s letter to WSB of Nov. 30, 1915, she talks about having had “more Australian visitors” and their “comrades in khaki.”
Lady Anne left Egypt in May of 1914, before World War I started. Fasiha died in the winter of 1914-15. Lady Anne returned to Egypt to take up residence at Sheykh Obeyd in October of 1915, after the war started. This photo must have been taken no earlier than October 1915, which was after Fasiha had died.
Which are the options left then, if not Fasiha?