Horrand von Grafrath (lying) & Mari von Grafrath (sitting)
SZ 1 & SZ 2 the first two GSDs to be registered.

The first 'national' German Shepherd was known as Hektor Linksrhein. Von Stephanitz acquired this dog from the Sparwasser kennels and renamed him under his own kennel prifix: Horrand von Grafrath. he was to appear as the entry in the new SV Breed Register the SZ (Zuchtbuch für Deutsche Schäferhunde). Horand was thus SZ 1. In his famous book The German Shepherd Dog in Word and Picture, von Stephanitz wrote as follows.
"...for the enthusiasts of that time Horand embodied the fulfilment of their fondest dreams; he was large - from 24-25½ in (61-62cm), height of back...and even from the point of view of present conditions a very good medium size, with powerful bones, beautiful lines and nobly formed head; clean and sinewy in build, the whole dog was a live wire. His character corresponded to his exterior qualities...marvellous in his obedient faithfulness to his master; above all, the straight-forward nature of a gentleman with a boundless and irrepressible zest for living...Horand handed down these wonderful characteristics to his immediate descendants. these still survive today..."