A blog on desert arabian horses, past, present and future
The Kuhaylat al-Hayf mare Enchante CF (Zacharia x Velveteen by Sir) was bred at Craver Farms, and then sold to Shirley Jacobsen who then gave her to Pamela Klein.. She is now at Craver Farms, where this photo was taken last week by Nancy Becker. I saw this mare three times, and she never looked … Read more
Jeanne Craver sent me these fresh pictures of my little Wadd (Triermain CF x Wisteria CF by Triermain CF), which Nancy Becker photographed last week. I like the broad, muscled chest. The white around the eyes seems characteristic of Wisteria’s progeny (see Tantris CF as a foal, here, scroll down to the end).
I am thrilled! At 1.00 am this morning, Wisteria foaled a handsome colt, by her own sire Triermain. Jeanne Craver, who brought him to the world, with Charles, wrote: At 11 she was starting to think about it; at 1 she had a nose and one leg out and was lying on her back up against … Read more
In a few days, Al Khamsa will be in a position to announce a very good news concerning the last remaining asil horses of Tahawi bloodlines. In the meantime, I am sharing with you this 30 year old photo, which Yehia al-Tahawi, a member of Cairo’s Jockey Club and otherwise a breeder of Straight Egyptian … Read more
She is in foal to her sire, Triermain CF.
Black Kuhaylan Hayfi stallion at Mustafa Jabri in 1990. Sire: Mahrous; dam: a Kuhaylah Hayfiyah from the Shammar Bedouins. I don’t remember her name.
Read this entry in the stud book of Faysal ‘Abd Allah Sa’ud al-Tahawi, excerpted from the tribe’s website: “Then, in the year 1356 H, we bought the bay ‘Ubayyah Sharrakiyah from Ibn Samdan, when she was in foal, and she gave birth, while in our ownership, to a chestnut colt whose sire is the [Kuhaylan] … Read more
This is the first time I see a photo of Nusi (Gulastra x Nusara by  Abu Zeyd), a 1928 Kuhaylan Da’jani stallion bred by W.R. Brown in Berlin, New Hamsphire, USA.
Mokhtar, the old asil Kuhaylan al-Krush stallion, bred by the Shammar Bedouins in Syria and now in France, continues to sire nice foals at 24 years of age. Here is a photo of the little filly Mutarak Nesba (Mokhtar x Murad Diffa) bred by Guillaume Lambert and Margot Leroux-Berger, in France. By the way, it … Read more
El Alamein (Dhareb out of Antarah by Antez), a 1943 Kuhaylan Haifi, and one of four full siblings, who were at the heart of the rebirth of Davenport breeding. Shown here in old age, and blind from an infection (hence the swollen eye). Charles Craver handling.
Grace Note CF (Pericles x Most Fair CF by Fair Sir) was bred by Craver Farms and later owned by Randy Abler of Georgia. Photos Shirin Samiljan. Note the long, tipped ears, the prominent facial bones, the delicate nostrils, and the placement and expression of the eyes. Faras ‘atiq like we say back home. … Read more
Bred by Charles Craver, by El Alamein out of Saranah by Salan. I saw him in extreme old age in 2000 shortly before his death. He produced more than 50 get, inclucing his son Regency CF, who is still alive at 30, and who in turn produced 65 offspring for Craver Farms.
Wendy Clark has taken up the torch on the preservation of the American asil Arabian horses that trace in tail female to the outstanding *Turfa, a Kuhaylat al-‘Ajuz from the stables of Saudi Arabia’s King ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Aal Saud, and imported to the USA in 1941 by Henri Babson.These tail female *Turfa’s and other precious … Read more
Arnault Decroix sent me the following account of the first endurance race (13 miles) of the Syrian stallion Hussam al-Shamal: “Hussam a fait sa course avec Nicolas aux Andelys en Normandie. Epreuve élevage 20 kms pour 6ans.  Il l’a fait en 14,84 kms/heure, le meilleurs temps de l’épreuve de vitesse imposée entre 12 et 15 kms/heure. Ayant été gêné … Read more
Laszlo Kiraly of Hungary has two colts this year, both sired by his stallion Dahhmany Bagdady (Wahhabit X Tisrina B by Salaa El Dine): the first, Shahhran Bagdady (below) was born on 5th of March, out of the Wahhabit daughter Shahhra (Wahhabit x 225 Sheherazade B by Ibn Galal III). The second, Sulayman Bagdady is out … Read more
Guest blogger and friend Ambar Diaz in California is now the proud owner of the very pertty Kuhaylah Hayfiyah mare Pirouette (Javera Thadrian x Piquante by Plantagenet), one of the jewels of the Craver breeding program.
Adrien Deblaise also sent me this recent photo of another Syrian stallion now in France, Hussam al-Shamal (Ra’ad x Rouba al-Shamal by Al-Abjar), a Kuhaylan al-Nawwaq bred by Saed and Raed Yakan in al-Bab near Aleppo, Syria. Hussam is owned by Damacus breeder Naji al-Chaoui, who has him stationed in France with Arnault Decroix. Adrien has … Read more
A few days ago, I began a thread on the early story of strain of Kuhaylan Abu ‘Arqub, as it was mentioned in the ‘Abbas Pasha Manuscript. The information is reconciled from two slightly different sources: first, my notes from the English translation of the Manuscript (a copy of the book is in my father’s … Read more
When I purchased my first copy of the Abbas Pasha Manuscript, I was surprised not to find a mention of the well-known strain of Kuhalyan Abu ‘Arqub (fem. Umm ‘Arqub). Its absence was particularly puzzling since it was listed as one of the ten favorite strains of the viceroy of Egypt Abbas Pasha Hilmi I. … Read more
Ambar Diaz told me that the Kuhaylan Hayfi stallion Ascendant (Monsoon X Demetria by Lysander) died last week at Michael Bowling’s in California. He was 32. The only remaining link to the Monsoon sire line is through Ascendant’s son SA Apogee.
I recently received some fresh news from Muhammad al-Tahawy who maintains the fascinating website of the Tahawi tribe with a large section dedicated to their horses. Muhammad directs me to one of the sections of the website, where he is regularly uploading photos and documents of original horses purchased by the Tahawi from Syria, mainly … Read more
This is the Kuhaylah Haifiyah GH Janet (Javera Thadrian’s full sister), welcoming her 2005 gray daughter (by Ascendant), Brighton TAH. I’m not sure who took the photo — probably Tanya Hardin, the breeder. (Because it’s a little bit of an obsession with me lately, I want to point out that Janet’s head has never seen … Read more
Between the photo of Aghal and the one of Audacity, I had to share this one taken of an Audacity granddaughter in 2007, as a long yearling. This is ADA Skylarking, a Kuhaylah Hayfiyah, as photographed by the talented Christine Emmert.
Audacity (Lysander x Bint Dharebah by Monsoon) was one of the pretties Kuhaylah Hayfiyah mares of Davenport bloodlines, and the matriarch of a important sub-family of equally beautiful horses, including Audobon, Nuance, Affinity, Piquante, and Pirouette . Bred by Craver Farms.
Matthias is back from Saudi Arabia from a horse tour organized by Europe’s Asil Club, and he and his wife brought back pictures of Arabians of the desert-bred lines, including one he sent me, below, of the stallion Khaleel Dirab, a Kuhaylan Abu ‘Urqub by by Rezaiq out of Khuzamah, bred and owned by the … Read more
Edouard’s posting of the mare Afaf reminded me strongly of En Pointe CF. She is a 1998 chestnut Kuhaylah Hayfiyah, by Triermain CF out of Pirouette CF. The first photo gives a better sense of her style; the second of her conformation (although note that she’s not standing on level ground, so don’t be fooled … Read more
Amoori (Al-Aawar x Ghallaieh, by the black Saqlawi Marzakani, the “horse of Al-‘Anud”) is a full brother to Amshet Shammar, pictured below. He was bred by Radwan Shabareq in Aleppo, from a mare bred by Rakan al-Jarba of the Shammar Bedouins, from a line originating from the Tai leaders, in turn originating from the Fad’aan … Read more
This is the third feature on the series on uncommon strains, and it features the strain of Kuhaylan ibn Mizhir. Kuhaylan ibn Mizhir is a little known strain in the West. It is specific to Syria and to parts of Iraq that are adjacent to the Syrian border. The strain belongs to the Bedouin tribe … Read more
The Tahawi website maintained by Mohammed al-Tahawy is a wonderful resource of original testimonies about the horses that this Bedouin clan bred throughout the XXth century. A few months ago, English translations of some of the hujaj (Arabic certification documents) of some of the foundation horses acquired by the Tahawi were featured on this website, … Read more
Check out this compelling article, by W. Michael Briggs Jr., on the website of the Davenport Arabian Horse Conservancy. It is graced with the picture of the beautiful Kuhaylan Hayfi stallion Audobon LD (Iliad x Audacity by Lysander), ridden by owner Marge Smith, and by the Hamdani Simri stallion Personic LF (Ibn Don Carlos x … Read more
The camels were white and elegant, fast and enduring, as befit the mounts of kings. The mare, tethered to the saddle of the first camel, was as white, as elegant, as enduring, and even faster. Her ancestors had traveled the same way, tethered to camels, waiting for the shock of the rider’s leap and the … Read more
Yesterday, Lisa from the UK asked about the meaning of the word “Kuhaylan” and its feminine “Kuhaylah”, as applied to Arabian horses; I won’t tell you anything that most of you don’t know already, I only want to give a sense of its etymology. If you want to understand the meaning of a concept in Arabic, … Read more
Nine, ten, eleven, …many. Let’s throw counting to the winds, shall we? (Bonus Red Dwarf humor included, because that’s the way my mind works.) The mares say: This is mine:1 And this is mine:2 This is mine too:3 In fact, all this here is mine:4 Except that. But he can nurse anyway.5 Key Capucine and … Read more
This is the second item in the series on rare, uncommon Arabian horse strains, after the strain of Hazqan Misrabi, featured earlier. This time I will mention the strain of Kuhaylan al-Shaykhan, feminine Kuhaylat al-Shaykhah. This is one of the most respected branches of Kuhaylan al-‘Ajuz, and the Sba’ah tribe possessed a couple marabet from … Read more
Not a straight Davenport this time, but too good to keep to myself: the 1987 Kuhaylan Hayfi stallion Audition LD (Audobon x Leafs Echo). This is one of Carol Lyons’ “Sharps” (no Blunt breeding). I know very little about him, other than his location (Illinois—these images look like StarWest to me), his pedigree, that he’s … Read more
“It’s been a long December, and there’s reason to believe Maybe this year will be better than the last.” — Counting Crows, “A Long December” Saqlawi al-’Abd Tripoli, a cornerstone of the straight Davenports as they exist today (images in the left column), and his Kuhaylan Hayfi grandson Memoir UF, called Rory by those who … Read more
A father-son pairing this time, both Kuhaylan Hayfi. Atticus (Dharanad x Fairy Queen) is 24 in the first image. Attikos (Atticus x Marigold CF) is three (and, I think, in the middle of a trot-canter transition—). See how Attikos is using his LS joint, “sitting down” in the rear to push off? A quick look … Read more
It’s Boxing Day, so you get a bonus Davenport. (Actually, I ran across a series of comparisons between historic and modern Davenports that some Davenport people did in email in 2006, and I’ll try to share the ones I can illustrate.) Sotamm, 1919 brown mare (*Hamrah x *Farha) ADA Recapitulation, 2003 chestnut mare (Memoir UF … Read more
Per Jenny Krieg’s suggestion, the Iras full sister Thea Isis, and her daughter, the iconic JAL Athena. Now all we need is a good shot of Portent, HB Octavia’s full brother, and we can complete the set. P.S. I’m sorry about the cropping, but I couldn’t quite get the gallery to do what it said … Read more
This picture is from the Craver photo collection, courtesy of Jeanne Craver. It is another one of my favorite pictures of Arabian stallions of Davenport lines.. Lysander (Sir x Dhalana by Salan), was one of the main stallions at Craver Farms in the 1970s and 1980s.
Ambar reminded me of this 1994 video by Carol Mingst, where some of the Davenport Arabian stallions in the North-West USA appear. You will see the magnificent stallions Kuhaylan Haifi stallion Audobon (Iliad x Audacity) and a paternal grandson of Monsoon, SA Apogee (Ascendant x Copper Hill Rysa by Flight Plan), as well as Al … Read more
Bon Vivant CFÂ was bred at Craver Farms by Lysander out of Bonne Fortune by Dharanad. He looks splendid in that picture.
The 1943 mare *Kouhailane (photo above, not flattering) was one of the 14 horses to be imported to the USA by press magnate W.R. Hearst in 1947. She hails from the Lebanese plain of Akkar, north of Tripoli and close to the Syria border. ‘Akkar is the prime horse-breeding area in Lebanon. It is a very … Read more
This mare was mentioned several times on this blog. She is a Kuhaylat al-Wati of the marbat of Hakim al-Ghishm of the Shammar Bedouins in Nort-Eastern Syria. Her sire, dam, grandsire and granddam, and her ancestors beyond that are from the same marbat, and bred by the same family. She was owned by Mustafa Jabri … Read more
This photo is from the collection of the late Mary Gharagozlu, through Brigitte Killian. It pictures the Bahraini Kuhaylat al-Mulawlish mare Mlolesh Al-Yatima (Jellabi al-Asil x Mlolesh).
Fancy Flight (Tripoli x Ceres by Aramis) was a full sister to Monsoon. Asil Kuhaylah Hayfiyah bred by Craver Farms, and founder of a family of herself. Photo courtesy of Jeanne Craver.
This is a Kuhaylah Hayfiyah at the stud of the late Alaa Din Jabri (Mustafa’s uncle), east of Aleppo. I forgot what her name was, but you can easily find her in the first Volume of the Syrian studbook. Her sire was Mahrous, and her dam one of the two bay Kuhaylah Hayifiyah mares daughters … Read more
A beautiful head shot of the 1980 asil Kuhaylan Haifi stallion Audobon (Iliad x Audacity by Lysander out of Bint Dharebah by Monsoon), bred by Charles Craver and later owned by Carol Lyons and Marge Smith in Oregon.
Since we were discussing Monsoon, here is his most influential daughter, Bint Dharebah (x Dharebah). The DAHC pedigree database credits her with 7 registered foals and a total of 74 descendants as of the 2006 update. I have heard RJ quoted to the effect that she is the modern echo of *Reshan — perhaps he … Read more
The asil stallion Ghalion-6 is by Ghalion (Morafic x Lubna) out of 25 Amurath-Sahib (Amurath Sahib x 221 Kuhaylan Zaid by Kuhaylan Zaid out of 11 Siglavy Bagdady II). He traces to the mare 60-Adjuze, imported from the Arabian desert by Austro-Hungarian Empire official Fadlalla El Hedad. Adjuze was reportedly bred by the Sba’ah Bedouins, her sire … Read more
The strain of al-Kray is a branch of Kuhaylan al-Krush and it originates from either the Bedouin tribe of al-‘Ajman or that of Bani Hajar.
This is a raelly unique photo, by Carl Raswan, from the Craver photo collection. It shows the mare Szeikha, a chestnut Kuhaylat al-‘Ajuz purchased in the Arabian desert in 1931 by Bogdan Zientarski and Carl Raswan on the behalf of Prince Roman Sanguszko for the Gumniska Stud. She was bred i n 1923 by “Sheikh Farhan … Read more
The chestnut stallion Kassar (Mahrous x Dawha by K. al-Wati) was bred by Mustafa al-Jabri and purchased by Omar Anbarji of Aleppo, who sent me the picture below. Kassar’s dam Dawha hails from the ma’ruf (well-known — by the Bedouin community, that is) and mazbut (reliable, authenticated, trusted) marbat of Kuhaylan al-Wati of the sons of … Read more
Jeanne Craver scanned the photo of Monsoon (Tripoli x Ceres by Aramis) which some readers have mentioned and which I was so eager to see. She wrote: “IÂ have it as a slide and as a page proof from an Arabian Horse World ad we did years ago. I used the ad page, so there creases … Read more
I think this stallion, Monsoon (Tripoli x Ceres) is stunning. I am sorry about the poor quality of the picture. He was born at Craver Farms in 1967 and it is a shame he died young [well not so young, says Joe Ferriss, my memory is failing me] and therefore left little progeny.
Finally, a photo of the 24 year old desert-bred Bahraini stallion *Mlolshaan Hager Solomon at his owner Bill Biel in Michigan. Jenny Krieg went up there and took this picture, from which Jeanne Craver removed the tack. Jenny has leased a mare of Saudi Arabian lines from Rodger Vance Davis to breed to him, and Rodger … Read more
I was sorry to hear about the passing of Majd, the bay Kuhaylan Hayfi stallion whose picture i recently posted. While visiting the Al Basel government stud in Syria, Majd’s sire was introduced. He is an imposing grey of good size, and his name is Basil [Mahrous x Halah]. He is of the Kuhaylan Mimrah … Read more
The ‘Ubayyan Suhayli stallion Mahrous was, until his death in the late 1990s, the herd sire at Mustafa al-Jabri’s stud in Aleppo, Syria. Today his sire line is, along with that of the Damascus stallion Ayid, the most prolific in modern Syrian Arabian horse breeding. If you check Mahrous’ entry in the Syrian Arabian Horse Studbook, … Read more
This photo of the stallion Rock (Ragie x El Charsaa by Gezeier) with proud owner Shaykh Sulayman ibn Abd al-Hamid ibn ‘Ulaywa al-Tahawi was taken from the Tahawi family website. I am so grateful to Bernd Radtke for among other things, his sharing with me the pedigree of Rock’s daughter Bombolle (Rock x Maskerade), which … Read more