This model was part of the original Special Edition Stablemates Gift Set offered through JAH in 1998, which introduced twelve new Stablemate molds to Breyer's lineup! Prior to that time, the Stablemates line had not been updated since the Maureen Love sculpts were introduced in the '70s. It was definitely time for an update!
Interestingly, this set doesn't appear to have had an item number, but 5,000 sets were produced for JAH in 1998. I remember buying this set when it first came out - it may have been the first JAH special run I was actually able to purchase (prior to that time the special runs would sell out by the time I got my copy of the magazine and mailed in my order). This model, like all of the G2s, was sculpted by Kathleen Moody.
Unfortunately, the sets were plagued with quality issues, which I remember noticing when I received mine - but I only would have been twelve years old at the time, so the concept of exchanging things was totally unknown to me. Oh well! My set has taken some damage (some of which can be seen in the photo), but that's bound to happen when they're owned by a twelve-year-old (with a weird habit of sometimes putting them all back in the foam insert in the box for some reason).
I always liked this particular mold because it's so stereotypically Andalusian, from the pose to the thick mane and tail, even the color (on this release). I love dapple gray horses in general, but a nice dark one like this is really hard to resist. His allure has faded a little bit since his introduction almost 20 years ago, but I have no intention of getting rid of mine - he's the fairy tale horse so many people have dreamed of!
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