Albigna Sells In Foal To St Mark’s Basilica For €3.7million

St Mark’s Basilica covered another top-class book of mares in his second season at stud, including Group 1 heroine Albigna (Zoffany), who sold for €3.7million at Goffs on Friday.

The Prix Marcel Boussac winner provided the first highlight of the November Breeding Stock Sale, where she was offered by Baroda Stud as part of the Niarchos draft. MV Magnier outlasted Juddmonte’s Simon Mockridge to secure the chesnut, whose first foal by Wootton Bassett fetched €460,000 at the venue’s Orby Sale.

“She’s a lovely mare,” MV Magnier later commented. “The whole Niarchos family are incredible breeders and very close, special friends of ours for a very long time. We’re very happy we can get such a good mare and try to continue their legacy. These kinds of mares don’t come on the market very often and we’re just very lucky that we’ve got very good partners that are willing to support us in buying these sorts of mares.”

“St Mark’s Basilica’s foals are very good, so we're looking forward to seeing the foal she has,” he continued “If she has a good foal, it’s an easy decision to go back to him again.”

Music Box is another example of the high-class mares sent to St Mark’s Basilica this Spring, she being a Listed winner and Group 3 placed own-sister to the Group 2 Dante Stakes runner-up Ektihaam. BBA Ireland went to €125,000 for the bay, who was offered by the Castlebridge Consignment on Friday afternoon.