Totilas, a former world record holder for top dressage score in grand prix freestyle dressage, died in 2020 — but 120 millilitres of his frozen semen remains in the hands of former owner Simon Cornelis Visser.

Mr Visser, a Dutch real estate agent, acquired the horse in 2006 and later sold him in 2010 to breeder Paul Schockemöhle for a whopping €9.5 million.

He is now attempting to sell the horse semen, also valued in the millions of euros, but has been challenged by Mr Schockemöhle, who claims that his purchase of Totilas implicitly included exclusive breeding rights.

Mr Schockemöhle has launched legal proceedings in Germany to prevent the sale of the semen, Der Spiegel reports.

To further complicate matters, Mr Schockemöhle believes that Totilas was infertile at the time the sample was taken, rendering it worthless.

The case continues and it is unclear when a ruling can be expected.