Although he was leader of a relatively obscure Shia religious sect, the Aga Khan, who died earlier this week in Lisbon at the age of 88, was a widely known figure in Ireland, particularly after he brought famed racehorse Shergar to his Ballymany Stud Farm near Newbridge,

The Aga Khan, who has died aged 88, then retired the horse and sent it to stud in Kildare - but only after selling shares in the beast worth a cool €37 million in today’s money.

The Aga Khan's bloodstock empire was built on homebreds, although he infused new blood along the way by acquiring the late Francois Dupre's stock in 1977, and that of the late Marcel Boussac in 1978 and Jean-Luc Lagardere in 2005, reaping rich rewards with stallion Linamix among the last-named batch of purchases.