Sire:  ESTIMADO V (Champion of Champions, Spain, Mexico and Costa Rica)
Dam: *MELODIA II (Champion mare in Spain)

*MERLIN I is the grandson of two of the most influential stallions in Spain -    Cortesano and Habanero.

Merlin's sire Estimado V was a champion in Spain before being imported to Mexico as a three year old.  While there, Estimado V captured the title of Best Movement.  After standing for less than two years at stud he was sold at a very high price to a breeder in Costa Rica where again he received a Championship.

Estimado V was bred by the CONDE DE ODJEL, whose horses are the purest of the pure "Bocado" lines.  The horses of this breeder, also known as "Urquijo", are renowned for their movement and great presence.  The Urquijo line are known as pure Cartujano, direct descendents of the Andalusian horses that were selectively bred by the Carthusian monks.  *Merlin I has inherited the Urquijo movement of his sire and the Carthusian characteristic of a 'horn', a calcium-like deposit on the temple, which may have produced the myth of the unicorn. (Click here to see Merlin's "horn").

The sire of Estimado V is Cortesano IV.  This great stallion bears the ancient and respected brand of Pallares (the Pallares brand predates the Terry brand) and is regarded as having close to perfect con-formation.  Cortesano IV, with his pure genetic pool, is one of the most sought after stallions in Spain today.

*Melodia II, the dam of *Merlin I, is from the farm of Enrique Lovera Porras - a farm renowned for the quality of mares.  *Melodia II was purchased in Spain and exported to Mexico when she was a part of the gold medal winning "Cobra" of three mares - mares shown together to demonstrate the breeding stock of a farm.  This is one of the greatest prizes that can be won by a breeder.

*Melodia II has had many foals and has been an incredibly successful producer both in Spain and in Mexico.  Her sire, Habenero IV of pure "Bocado" blood acquired from the "Terry" stud and owned by the Spanish military, is one of the cornerstones of the line of the modern generation.  Her dam, Danzarina, is one of the foundation mares of the "Lovera" study.