to race 
Birthstone at the Tatts July Sale in 2016We were thrilled to get back into the Baya (1990 Nureyev x Barger - sister to Triptych) family that gave us Bayja and her offspring New Providence, Ahdaf and Ekhtiyaar when we purchased Birthstone (Machiavellian x Baya 2002) in 2016. She is not the normal type of mare purchase by James Ortega Bloodstock being 14 years old at the time as well as a Group 3 winner herself on the track. Birthstone has also had an up and down broodmare career to date with a couple of good winners but also four barren years in the last eight. On a positive note she is by a very good broodmare sire (Machiavellian) and all in all we felt it was worthwhile to take a chance on her and she visited Bated Breath in 2017 and has produced a very good looking sizeable filly in March 2018. This filly turned out to be Gift List who won two races at 2yo to become the fifth progeny of Birthstone to win a race, was never out of the first two in five outings and won black type when 2nd over 7f in the Listed Radley Stakes and received a rating of 97. She also won two Great British Bonus prizes of £20k. She was then sold to race in the USA with trainer Brian Lynch and, after a 2nd in a Grade 2, won the Grade 2 Edgewood Stakes at Churchill Downs at the end of April 2021. Birthstone visited Havana Gold in 2018 and produced a filly before being rested in 2019. She was also not covered in 2020 whilst in 2021 she visit Bated Breath but did not get in foal. In 2022 she is in foal to A'Ali.
As a juvenile in France, Birthstone only ran twice but won on both occasions including the Group 3 Prix d'Aumale but she did not race again due to injury and began her second career in 2006 when she paid a visit to Pivotal. That union brought a colt who never made it to the track and the following year she had a filly by Tiger Hill called Charm Bracelet who won a race in France and was rated 97. James Ortega Bloodstock was underbidder on her when she went to the December Sales in 2012 selling for 41,000 guineas in foal to Poet's Voice and we were very impressed with her physique. She was sent to India but unfortunately died on foaling a filly. The next two years brought fillies Jewel Box (by Pivotal 2009) and Mirth (by Teofilo 2010) and these two are now broodmares in Japan and New Zealand respectively. In 2012 Birthstone produced another smart racehorse in Classic Win (by Invincible Spirit 2012) who won and was rated 91 before bad luck hit again and he died at three years old. Currently she has a 2014 Teofilo filly called Lovemenot and a 2015 Invincible Spirit colt called Star Of Valour to run for her. Lovemenot won at Limerick in June 2017 and reached a rating of 84 Star of Valour made his debut in June 2018 finishing a decent third in a maiden in France but was later sold to race in the UK where he has won four races.
Birthstone at Manor House Farm Stud in June 2017
The family is well and truly global as there are six or so broodmares in Japan as well as sire Furioso who is out of Fursa the 1995 Mr Prospector half sister to Birthstone, a branch in NZ/Australia where a sister to Furioso called Fujisawa (by Green Desert 2002) is a broodmare, a full sister broodmare Finchley (2004) in Turkey as well as a few relatives in USA and South Africa as well as closer to home in France and Ireland!! Finchley did not run and has been disappointing at stud until Sladina (by Nathaniel) came third in the 2018 Italian Oaks after winning a listed race in that country and is now a broodmare.
The Bayberry (by Bering 2002) branch of the family is currently the one that promises the most containing Bayja (by Giants Causeway 2007) who has had five winners from six runners including double Group 3 winner and Group 2 placed New Providence who reached 107 and was the best horse bred by James Ortega Bloodstock until brother Ekhtiyaar ran to 110 when second in a G3 in the UAE in 2019. New Providence was covered by Muharaar in 2016 and produced that sire's first offspring with a colt in early 2017 who subsequently won five races in Italy as Ferro E Foco. In 2017 she visited Dark Angel resulting in a filly called Rhode Island Girl, who was placed on the track before becoming a broodmare and visiting El Kabeir in 2022. New Providence then had a colt by Dabirsim in 2019 called Christopher who is now in training with Jamie Osborne and did not show much at 2yo in three runs. New Providence was sold to Japanese owners Shadai Stud at the 2019 December Mares Sale for 200,000 guineas, had a filly by exciting shuttle sire Zoustar before being shipped to Japan in foal to Postponed. She produced a colt and was then covered by Duramente in 2021. Bayja followed up with another winner in Ahdaf then Ekhtiyaar (colt by Bated Breath 2014) who won on his second outing as a two year old and then two further wins in 2017 before stepping up in 2019 to stakes level. He is still running as an 8yo in 2022 and has reached a rating high of 112. She then had a 2016 filly by Dark Angel called New Revenue who made a decent debut at two years old coming 3rd but was unfortunately injured and did not race again. She is now a broodmare and visited Waldgeist in 2020 producing a colt. She returned to that sire in 2021. In 2017 she had a colt by Make Believe called Dick Datchery who has won twice and in 2018 a filly by New Bay called Jacinth who won at 2yo and is rated 85 but has not been seen since 2020. In 2019 she produced a colt by Lawman who is in training with Clive Cox called Codify who was placed twice at 2yo. Bayberry herself has a 2014 colt by Holy Roman Emperor called Maximus Daia who won at the third time of asking, a 2016 colt called Harliston Tower by Mastercraftsman who only ran twice and colts by the same sire in 2018 (True Artist) and 2019 (Kaphal) who was sold to the Czech Rep but has not run as of May 2022. Furthermore Bayja's half sister Myrica (by Dansili 2009) has a 2014 mare called Camiyra (by Henrythenavigator) who was placed a few times and reached a rating of 67, a 2015 mare called Pistachio by the same sire who is now a broodmare with a 2019 filly by Outstrip and a 2020 colt by Dragon Pulse a 2021 filly by Mehmas before visiting Dawn Approach. Bayberry also has a 2016 filly by Camelot called Guinevere who won a race and is now a broodmare being covered by Acclamation in 2021, a 2017 colt by Lope De Vega (Alargedram) who has won, a 2018 colt by Camelot called Northern who has won, a 2019 filly by Acclamation called Esculenta who has been placed and rated 84, a 2020 colt by Australia and then visited Acclamation in 2021. Last but not least is Bayberry's son Eddystone Rock (by Rock of Gibraltar 2012) who has won eight races and was rated as high as 102.
All in all we think that this is a family with a great future and that Birthstone, despite her "barren" issues, is very capable of producing some talented offspring as she has proved with Gift List. Her 2019 filly by Havana Gold called Rocadora did not run and is now a broodmare with James Ortega Bloodstock in foal to Dream Ahead in 2022.