Nearing the end of Sunday’s second session of Arqana’s Breeding Stock
Sale, His Highness The Aga Khan’s SHEMISSA (Fairy King) stole the show
when topping trading at €130,000.
Consigned as Hip No. 471, the 12-year-old dam of
2007 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere (Fr-G1) third Shediak (Selkirk) and two other
winners was offered in foal to Monsun. Eventually, it was Crispin de Moubray who secured the daughter of the Prix de Diane
Hermes (Fr-G1) heroine Shemaka (Nishapour).
Prior to that, the headline-maker had been Hip 415, the
five-year-old MASQUE ROSE (Oasis Dream [GB]), who is carrying a foal by
Muhtathir (GB). From Haras de Meautry, the winning bay has obvious broodmare
potential as a relative of the great Miesque, Kingmambo and Six Perfections (Fr). Her half-brother Nid d’Abeilles (Green Desert) was a
scorer at the listed level and also third in the 2006 Prix du Palais-Royal
(Fr-G3). Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock prevailed with a bid of
€125,000.
“She
was an absolutely gorgeous mare, one of the nicest I have seen at the sale,”
Brown told the Racing Post. “Masque Rose will stay in France for the time being
until we have decided which stallion she will go to next year.”
Two lots
beforehand, Stephen Hillen snapped up Haras de Bernesq’s LIBERTY CHERY (Statue of Liberty) for
€105,000. Placed twice at the listed level last
year, the
half-sister to 2005 Criterium de Saint-Cloud (Fr-G1) runner-up Fauvelia (Polish
Precedent) is in foal to Invincible Spirit and will race for Sheikh Al Thani.
Sunday’s session saw the average of €21,085
increase by 19.7 percent
as compared to the 2009 average of €17,620. The €16,000
median jumped by 23.1 percent on last year’s
€13,000 median. A total of 170 horses sold for
€3,584,500, an 8.2 percent rise over the
corresponding session last year when 188 equines were purchased for €3,312,500.
Over the first two
days, the total gross of €15,115,500, which
includes private sales, exceeds last year’s equivalent of
€13,722,500, including private sales, by 10.2
percent at
present.
Selling continues Monday, with full results available at
www.arqana.com.