Tracery (horse)

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Tracery (horse)

Background
- Tracery was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred born in 1909.
- He was bred in Kentucky by August Belmont Jr. and was by Rock Sand out of Topiary.
- He was trained by John Watson at Newmarket, England.

Racing career
- 1912 (three-year-old): Tracery made his debut in The Derby and finished third. He then won three major races:
- St. James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot
- Sussex Stakes at Goodwood
- St. Leger Stakes at Doncaster (becoming the first American-bred winner of the race)
- 1913 (four-year-old): He aimed for the Ascot Gold Cup, but during the race a spectator ran onto the course. Despite the scare, Tracery continued racing and won:
- Eclipse Stakes at Sandown Park (beating Louvois)
- Champion Stakes at Newmarket (winning by a clear margin)
- He also competed in the Jockey Club Stakes, finishing second to Cantilever

Stud record
- Tracery began stud duties at the Rothschilds’ Leighton Buzzard, first charging a fee of 400 guineas.
- He sired successful offspring, including The Panther (2000 Guineas winner), Papyrus (Epsom Derby winner), and Transvaal (Grand Prix de Paris winner).
- In 1920 he was sold for £53,000 and exported to stand as a stallion in Argentina, where he later sired Congreve.
- He returned to England in 1923 and died of colic in 1924 at Cobham Stud.

Assessment and honours
- In A Century of Champions, Tracery was rated a "superior" St Leger winner and considered the best British-trained racehorse of his generation.
- By the end of 1913, many writers regarded him as the world’s best racehorse and one of the greatest gallopers of his era.

As a museum object
- After his death, Tracery’s skeleton was donated to the Yorkshire Museum and displayed for many years, often together with the skeleton of Blink Bonny. In 1979, part of the display was reportedly reburied, with one skeleton’s location later becoming a mystery.

Pedigree (brief)
- Sire: Rock Sand
- Dam: Topiary

Tracery’s legacy lives on through his impact as a top racehorse in Britain and as a successful sire.