There are few names in the world of Arabian horses more widely known than that of Barbara A. Griffith. When you review the nearly fourty years of her involvement with Arabian horses, three words spring to mind: passion, type and success.
Photo: Javan Schaller
Barbara A. Griffith driving Orashan
Click the picture to see another image of him!
Passion
It all started in the early 1970’s when Barbara and her late husband, Doug, purchased an Arabian gelding and discovered their love for the Arabian horse. They never dreamed that this humble beginnings would evolve into one of the world’s premier straight Egyptian breeding programms.
Soon after their initial purchase they began to buy their first mares and Doug Griffith showed them to many championships, even at the National level. More often than not he was the only amateur in the ring but could hold against the professional trainers. In 1972 he showed his mare Gypsy Dancer (Habu x Gypsy Queen) to U.S. National Top Ten Mare. "I guess I was even more proud of Doug than of 'Dancer'," says Barbara.
Photo: Jerry Sparagowski
One of Imperial's foundation mares was
1971 U.S. National Champion Mare Serenity Sonbolah
The year before Gypsy Dancer’s success two straight Egyptians had won the titles at the National Show. These horses were Ansata Ibn Sudan (Ansata Ibn Halima x Ansata Bint Mabrouka) and the chestnut EAO import Serenity Sonbolah (Sameh x Bint Om El Saad). Doug and Barbara were fascinated by those two individuals that seemed to look so different from everything else they had seen before. Especially Serenity Sonbolah had cought their eye... and won them over to Egyptian horses. They had fallen under her magic spell and kept dreaming about her. In fact, after they had seen her performing in the ring, they began to search for straight Egyptian horses to start their entire breeding program anew.
Photo: Jerry Sparagowski
Imperial's first Egyptian mare was Malekat El Gamal from Albadeia Stud
Click the picture to see her daughter Imperial Sayyah!
It wasn’t easy to buy straight Egyptian horses at this period of time in the United States. Ansata, Bentwood and Gleannloch Farms had long waiting lists. Proven broodmares usually were not for sale at any price and the asking price for a promising filly was sky-high, not to mention the outrageous amount demanded for an exceptional colt! But luck was on their side and in 1974 the first Egyptian mare moved in. It was the six year old Al Badeia bred Malekat El Gamal (Waseem x Nagdia by Nazeer) in foal to the Morafic son Kayed. Before her exportation to the United States, Malekat El Gamal had produced (among others) the exceptional sire Ameer Al Badeia (by Kayed) who served as a herd sire at Al Badeia Stables for many years and was exported to Al Rayyan Farm in Qatar in his later years.
Photo: Jerry Sparagowski
Malekat El Gamal's great-grandson Al Adeed Al Shaqab
Click the picture to see another image of him!
Malekat El Gamal’s first foal produced for her new owners in Parkton/Maryland was the filly Imperial Sayyah, born in 1975. She was the first straight Egyptian horse born at Imperial. Her claim to fame is her grandson Al Adeed Al Shaqab (Ansata Halim Shah x Sundar Alisayyah x by Ruminaja Ali x Imperial Sayyah). Charismatic, white and beautiful beyond words, Al Adeed Al Shaqab is a multi champion stallion on three continents!
Malekat El Gamal’s own son Imperial Im Mahal (by Ansata Imperial), born in 1985, was recently purchased by Marion Richmond of Australia’s Simeon Stud and will be exported to "down under" within the next months. A new opportunity for this classic, "old-fashinoned" stallion of priceless bloodlines to prove himself as a sire.
Photo: Judith Wagner
Malekat El Gamal's son Imperial Im Mahal (by Ansata Imperial)
is now owned by Simeon Stud in Australia
Other outstanding horses like Fawkia (Sameh x Mamlouka by Nazeer) and Deenaa (Sameh x Dahma II by Nazeer) were purchased from Gleannloch Farms in 1975. In the same year the filly Ansata Nile Mist (Ansata Ibn Sudan x Falima) joined the ever-growing herd at Imperial. Ansata Nile Mist was a beautiful bay mare with a deep body and a ground-covering trot and an air of "star quality" around her. She produced outstanding foals who are spread around the world and her name is still important in Imperial pedigrees. Ansata Nile Mist’s daughter Imperial Mistilll (by Jamilll), who recently passed away, raised to one of the most important Imperial broodmares of any time. Mistilll’s get and grandget won national and international championships and excelled in the breeding shed as well. (Click here to read her story!)
Photo: private
The prolific broodmare Imperial Mistilll (Jamilll x Ansata Nile Mist)
Click the picture to see her dam,
Imperial's foundation mare Ansata Nile Mist!
It was in 1976 that the Griffith’s dream of owning the "Queen" herself finally became reality – Serenity Sonbolah along with her sister Serenity Sabra (Sameh x Sharzada by Nazeer) and other selected Serenity mares were incorporated into their broodmare band. At this point Imperial Egyptian Stud had assembled the largest single group of Sameh daughters outside of Egypt. Serenity Sonbolah, Deenaa, Serenity Sabra, and Fawkia stood side by side in Imperial’s broodmare barn. They were not only sired by Sameh but all four were out of Nazeer daughters – thus making them three-quarter sisters. This was not by chance but Barbara and Doug Griffith were struck by the deep bodies, good toplines and solid legs of the Sameh get. Add the fabulous, airy movement and their upright carriage along with exceptional high tail carriage and the type Nazeer had thrown in and you get the perfect picture of storybook Egyptian broodmares! Even today Barbara Griffith gives credit to her Sameh daughters for the strong hindquarters and drive from the hocks that are an important part of her breeding program.
Photo: Jerry Sparagowski
Three of Imperial's four famous Sameh daughters:
Fawkia, Serenity Sonbolah & Serenity Sabra
Click the picture to see Imperial's fourth Sameh daughter, Deenaa!
Although all Sameh daughters at Imperial were worth a kingdom, Serenity Sonbolah was the jewel in the crown. In the spring of 1976 she had broken a foot in an unfortunate accident. However, this handicap did not detere here from showing off in front of a crowd and many visitors fell in love with this special mare. One of her greatest admires should be Ralph Suarez, devoted owner and passionate rider of Arabian horses. "I saw Serenity Sonbolah on two occasions at Imperial Egyptian Stud. The first time that I had ever seen her, I didn't know it was her. I had arrived late at Imperial and was walking over to their indoor arena (not the new one), where the open house was being held, as it was raining. As I walked over towards the building, I saw a young girl leading a chestnut mare in from the field. The mare was having a difficult time walking and the girl was very sensitive to her, taking it slowly too, matching the pace of the mare's steps. I was looking at her body and she looked stocky, with a lot of substance. There was a lot of horse there. She was not the slight looking, narrower, elongated in the middle kind of horse that seems to be all the rage today.
Photo: Jerry Sparagowski
Serenity Sonbolah shows off her airy movement
"She was compact and she had muscles. She had a darker chestnut coat, not a bright red chestnut coat but that kind of chestnut that is deeper, with a hint of purple. She was dirty and she had not fully shed her winter coat (this was in early May). Gosh, I didn't see anything special or anything that I would consider attractive. I remember thinking to myself that I thought Imperial had dispersed all of their American bloodlines, as she did not have, from a distance, any of the chiseled features that I had seen on the horses that were pictured in the leading Egyptian books of the day. In my haste and arrogance, I had decided that she was definitely not Egyptian and not like the special horses that were waiting inside the building I was heading to. Imagine my surprise, when later in the day, this mare appeared in the outside ring (the weather had cleared by then and the sun was shining). I recognized her by her walk, as she was led up to the ring. Serenity Sonbolah? Someone must have made a mistake. Or so I thought, I am embarrassed to say. When the young girl unclipped the lead line and Barbara Griffith had shared some of her story, she asked and encouraged the audience assembled outside of the ring to share their enthusiasm and appreciation, as the mare really liked to show off. I thought, she must be kidding. I saw a transformation slowly take place... a miracle you might even call it. There was no way that this mare could move like that, based on seeing her walking back to the barn. With every clap, with every holler, this mare, who was having so much difficulty walking, became a trotting machine, with her tail curled over her back, her nostrils dilated and making this huge snorting sound. She floated this way and she floated that way. She extended her trot in ways that a dressage champion would envy. With every stride, the float lifted her body and she was suspended in the air longer and longer and longer. She was curvy and she was graceful. She danced all over the ring. She was a prima ballerina, showing off all of her best moves. I was so unfair and arrogant in my early appraisal of this beautiful mare... She is unforgettable. She gave us everything she had that day. She gave me more. She gave me a lesson in having a heart. And hearts just don't come any bigger. Do they make them like this anymore? I'll always be grateful to Barbara Griffith for opening up her farm and sharing these beautiful horses with everyone."
Photo: private
Count Federico Zichy-Thyssen aboard Hossny
Click the picture to see his grandson Imperial Al Kamar!
After such female beauties like AK Monareena, Dalia, and Pharrah were added to the Imperial broodmare band (Click here to read Pharrah's story!), Imperial was much in need of a stallion whose bloodlines would complement and improve their mares. Hossny (Ansata Ibn Halima x Sanaa) *1966 was bought from Gleannloch Farms, followed by the colts Ansata Imperial (Ansata Ibn Sudan x Ansata Delilah) *1976 from Ansata Arabian Stud and Moniet El Nafis (Ibn Moniet El Nefous x Hoyeda) *1976 from Bentwood Farms.
Photo: Johnny Johnston
Moniet El Nafis was aquired as a yearling from Bentwood Farms
Click the picture to see him as a mature stallion!
Later Hossny was sold to Count Federico Zichy-Thyssen in Argentina who built his entire straight Egyptian breeding program on Imperial and Ansata horses. Hossny’s influence at Imperial is felt mainly through his daughter Imperial Sonbesjul (x Serenity Sonbolah) who presented Barbara Griffith with the spectacular stallion Imperial Al Kamar, one of the very few straight Egyptian sons of the famous Ansata Ibn Halima son El Hilal (more about Al Kamar later).
Photo: Johnny Johnston
Imperial Naffata (Moniet El Nafis x Imperial Fanniya x Deena)
has champion get in three different countries
Click the picture to see her champion son Al Rayyan (by Imperial Madheen),
owned by
Al Adeyat Stud in Saudi Arabia!
Moniet El Nafis developed into a wonderfully built stallion with lots of scope and a textbook neck and topline and was able to win many blue ribbons in open competition. He was not only broke to ride but also excelled in harness. Some of his get were successful at the race track, like ZT Ali Baba (x Imperial Al Ahbab), who won 14 races and retired to sire another generation of record-setting race horses, Imperial Nalaseef (x Fawkia) who won the Armand Hammer Stake or Imperial Na Malis (x Malekat El Gamal), another Stakes winner sired by Moniet El Nafis.
Photo: Ken Thomas
ZT Ali Baba (Moniet El Nafis x Imperial Al Ahbab)
had more than $ 25,000 in race earnings
Click the picture to see his paternal half brother Imperial Na Malis!
straight Egyptian.com
Photo: Johnny Johnston
Ansata Imperial was destined to play an important part
in Imperial Egyptian Stud's future
Click the picture to see him as a mature stallion!
But it was Ansata Imperial who would emerge as the dominating force in the Imperial breeding barn for the next decade. An ultra-classic individual, he combined nine crosses to Nazeer. His sire was the afore-mentioned 1971 U.S. National Champion Stallion Ansata Ibn Sudan and his maternal granddam, Ansata Bint Misr (Sameh x Ansata Bint Bukra by Nazeer), was a three-quarter sister to Imperial’s Sameh daughters.
Photo: Scott Trees
Ansata Imperial in his prime
Click the picture to see another image of him!
Type
Ansata Imperial’s prepoteny as a sire put Imperial Egyptian Stud on the map. His foals won championships at the Egyptian Event as well as in open competition. Their exotic type coupled with smoothness of body set them apart. Even at the U.S. Nationals the Ansata Imperial get kept up with the best Arabians in the country. Names that come immediately to mind are Imperial Immarouf (x Glorieta Maarquesa), 1988 U.S. National Top Ten Futurity Colt (and later National Champion of Uruguay); Imperial Phanilah (x Imperial Phanadah), 1987 U.S. National Top Ten Futurity Filly (and later World Champion Mare in Paris); Imperial Imohaan (x AK Monareena), 1986 Region 15 Champion Stallion; Imperial Im Tarib (x Imperial Tiamo), 1986 Region 18 Western Pleasure Champion (and later International Champion Stallion of Paris) and of course the immaculate Imperial Imdal (x Dalia), who was made 1988 U.S. Reserve National Champion Stallion against really tough competition. (Click here to read his story!)
Sadly Dough Griffith passed away in 1980 and never was able to see the winning get of his stallion Ansata Imperial – but at least he had seen him winning the title of an U.S. National Top Ten Futurity Colt back in 1979.
"Ansata Imperial was an imp at heart," says Barbara. "He had simply a great disposition. And also there have been many great moments over the years, as a breeder it would be hard to top the high experience when his son, Imperial Imdal, owned by Vallée Arabians, was named U.S. National Reserve Champion Stallion," she recalls.
Just a few of Ansata Imperial's winning offspring
Click the pictures to enlarge!
Click here to continue the Imperial story!
Photo: Rik van Lent
Imperial Im Tiarah (Ansata Imperial x Imperial Mistry) &
Imperial Imphayana (Ansata Imperial x Imperial Phanadah)
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