Emanda 11 February 1996 – 27 October 2023
The global community has bid farewell to yet another of Michałów’s universally acclaimed World Champion Mares with the passing of Emanda. A legendary show horse and broodmatron supreme, Emanda exemplified the very best of her irrefutably royal heritage, serving as the vital link between generations of celebrated Arabian icons and achievers.
Emanda. Credit Erwin Escher
Born in the very first foal crop of Polish National Champion Ecaho (Pepton x Etruria), Emanda was rightfully recognised as extraordinarily special from birth, remaining the most important and accomplished get of her sire throughout her long and decidedly charmed life. Arriving on the heels of two of Michałów’s most destiny-altering foal crops – those of Monogramm in 1994 and 1995 – Emanda remained out of the spotlight until her famous stablemates moved on to performance duties at the racecourse, making her show-ring debut as a two-year-old in an assertive display of excellence. Always tall and impressively substantial, with a magnificent forehand, a powerful, animated trot and a captivating silvery white coat with a lustrous sheen, Emanda possessed a commanding presence and distinctly aristocratic demeanour, the compelling combination of which inevitably translated into an enviable show record of achievement. In her native Poland, Emanda was honoured as Polish Spring Show and Polish National Reserve Champion Junior Filly in 1998, sharing the spotlight with maternal brother Emanor (by Wojsław) at the latter event as he was named Polish National Champion Senior Stallion and Best in Show. Following her first international triumph as Bábolna Champion Junior Filly in Hungary that same season, Emanda earned her first title show accolade in Aachen as All Nations’ Cup Junior Champion Filly, a triumph made even more spectacular with the success of her immortal dam Emanacja earning the title of Senior Champion Mare and highest scoring horse of the show just moments later.
Emanda. Credit Fotograf Mattsson
Having just weaned her first foal in the autumn of 2001, Emanda returned to the show-ring as a senior mare, competing in only three shows: the All Nations’ Cup in Aachen, the European Championships in Verona, and the World Championships in Paris. Taking on all three legs of the European triple crown fresh off her first season as a matron, Emanda trotted her way to glory, in inimitable Polish mare style, as Reserve National Champion Senior Mare in Aachen and Verona, while saving her consummate performance for Paris, where she was crowned World Champion Senior Mare to the delight of her breeders and owners, who were celebrating back-to-back World Champion titles in the most competitive division following the victory of Zagrobla (Monogramm x Zguba by Enrilo) in 2000.
Emanda. Credit Erwin Escher
Competing for the first time as a senior mare in 2003 at the Polish National Show for one of the most coveted and prestigious titles in the breed, Emanda earned her first Polish National Reserve Senior Mare Championship while safely in foal with her most famous produce. Three years later, Emanda would settle for the ‘maid of honour’ position once again as 2006 Polish National Reserve Champion Senior Mare, this time sharing the spotlight with her destiny-defining daughter Emandoria as Polish National Reserve Junior Champion Filly. Rather incomprehensibly, the ultimate title of Polish National Champion Mare would evade Emanda throughout her lifetime, making her one of three World Champion Mares bred by Michałów who would never be rightfully crowned, a dubious distinction she shares with the two most famous daughters of Monogramm – Zagrobla and Kwestura – fellow stablemates both born just one and two years ahead of her, respectively. Even more astoundingly, Emanda, as a dual Polish National Reserve Champion Senior Mare, shares the same honour as two of her maternal sisters – Emilda (by Pamir) in 1996 and 1997, and Espadrilla (by Monogramm) in 2005 and 2008 – making the daughters of Emanacja the most celebrated collection of bridesmaids in Polish Arabian history.
Emanda and Emandoria. Credit Jen Miller Horsefly Films
Show-ring accolades aside, Emanda proved herself, as one would expect from a marquee descendant of Michałów’s world-renowned ‘E’ family of Emigracja, an invaluable producer of superlative progeny, earning Aristocrat Dam status with five champion progeny including four cherished daughters. Indisputably, the best of these was Emanda’s very first daughter, Emandoria (by Gazal al Shaqab), still considered by many as the greatest mare yet to be produced from the centuries-old Polish Arabian breeding programme. Born among a stellar constellation of stars sired by Gazal al Shaqab at the Polish State Studs in 2003-2004 – the collection of which included phenomenal females such as Pianissima, Pinga, Norma, Pistoria, Etnologia and Wilda – Emandoria would eventually go on to outshine them all, becoming the most accomplished and decorated Arabian mare in ever to set foot in the global arena.
Emandoria. Credit Erwin Escher
As a producer, Emandoria has surpassed the achievements of her venerated dam, earning Elite Aristocrat Dam status with eight champion progeny and counting. Among Emandoria’s beloved descendants are Polish National Champion Emanolla (by Vitorio TO), European and Polish National Champion El Esmera (Sahm el Arab x Esmeraldia by QR Marc), three-time US National Top Ten Royal Emanuel (by Eden C), East Coast Champion Mare H Emelia H (Preludio OSB x H Emandila H by El Nabila B), and multi-International Gold Champion and global sire of significance Emerald J (by QR Marc). After several successful overseas leases, during which Emandoria achieved much of her unprecedented international show-ring acclaim, ‘the Queen’ now safely resides at Michałów, where she is treasured by all as the most eminent royal in residence. Most remarkably, Emandoria’s record as three-time World Champion – Gold Champion Yearling Filly (2005), Gold Champion Senior Mare (2013) and Platinum Champion Senior Mare (2018), makes Emanda and Emandoria the only mother-daughter pair of World Champion Senior Mares in Arabian breed history, yet another standard-setting milestone for the unparalleled dam family of Emigracja.
Emandoria and Emanolla. Credit Fotograf Mattsson
Besides Emandoria, Emanda’s other notable daughter of international acclaim is Emandorissa (by Abha Qatar), a consistent show-ring competitor who was named European and Polish National Silver Champion Senior Mare in 2020. The following year, Emandorissa sold to Al Thumama Stud in Qatar for the respectable sum of €450,000, leaving behind three promising daughters to extend her legacy in Poland.
Emandorissa. Credit Patrycja Makowska
To have known and adored Emanda is to have also appreciated the genius that comprised her exceptional pedigree. Line-bred to Saklawi super-sires Bandos (Negatiw x Bandola by Witraż) and Palas (Aswan x Panel by Nil), with each appearing as paternal great-grandsire and maternal great-grandsire on both sides of her pedigree, respectively, Emanda was blessed with not only the invaluable influence of Bandos’ two most consequential sons – Eukaliptus (ex Eunice by Comet) and Pepton (ex Pemba by Czort), but also with the inestimable excellence of two of the most globally consequential daughters of Palas – World, European and Polish National Champion Etruria (ex Etna by Faher) through her sire, and broodmatron extraordinaire Emigracja (ex Emisja by Carycyn), immortalised as ‘the Pearl of Michałów’ as her tail-female link to legendary acclaim. In the third generation of Emanda’s pedigree alone, every single one of the dam lines is one of legendary renown in the breed, including Janow Podlaski’s ‘E’ families of distinction, those of foundation mares Sahara or.Ar. (~1840) connecting through Eunice-Epigona (by Amurath Sahib)-Epizoda (by Trypolis), and Wołoszka (~1810) tracing through Etna-Elżunia (by Witraż)-Elza (by Rasim Pierwszy), as well as the two most celebrated and universally accomplished dam lines in Polish Arabian breeding: the ‘P’ family of Piewica (Priboj x Włodarka by Ofir) descending from Szamrajówka (~1810), and the unrivalled ‘E’ family of Estokada (Amurath Sahib x Saga by Hardy) belonging to Milordka (~1810).
Emanda. Credit Stuart Vesty (and cover image)
As a member of the ‘E’ dynasty of international icons, Emanda was an essential link in an unbroken chain of champion females that extends back to family foundress Estokada (1951), a five-time stakes winner on the racecourse including two legs of the Polish Triple Crown – the Oaks and Criterium. Emanda represents generation seven in this incomparable collection of females, with Emandoria and her champion daughters and granddaughters in turn extending the ever-expanding list of accolades, most inspiringly, to ten successive generations and counting. Moreover, the prodigious triumvirate of Emanacja, Emanda and Emandoria – three successive generations of standard-raising show mares and matrons, remain the only granddam, daughter and granddaughter combination to have ever been honoured with major titles at all three legs of the European Triple Crown.
Phenotypically, Emanda was so very much the ideal blend of both the most iconic mares in her immediate heritage, blessed with the imposing size, broody goodness and capacity, the extravagant forehand and the aristocratic aloofness of Emanacja, combined perfectly with the spellbinding presence, commanding show-ring charisma and explosively powerful athleticism of Etruria. Among the greatest collection of Arabian mares the world has ever known at Michałów, Emanda was unquestionably one of the most superb, beloved and cherished by all who had the good fortune to share in her extraordinary life. Wherever her enduring light still brightly shines amongst the generations of her exponentially expanding descendants, the path forward is illuminated with hope, with optimism and with possibility.
Emanda. Credit Stuart Vesty
Farewell, sweet Emanda. We are forever in your debt for raising our expectations of what is possible, and for bringing so much joy and beauty to the breed worldwide.
