| Ted's Tokens - Hanging Fleece | |||
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History of the Hanging Fleece | |
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This page is dedicated to the origins and history of the hanging fleece tokens. These feature the image of a sheep hanging by a ribbon around its belly. |
| In Greek mythology, Phrixos was rescued and carried to safety by a ram. He sacrificed the ram, whose fleece then turned to gold. Hanging from a tree limb, and guarded by a dragon, the Golden Fleece was sought after and won by the hero Jason and the Argonauts. In the zodiac, Aries the Ram ushers in the season of Spring. In some instances, the sign of the Ram is still associated with the Golden Fleece and Jason. Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, established the Order of the Golden Fleece in 1430. Its symbol is a hanging fleece by its stomach. The fleece in this representation is not the live animal, but is very clearly just the fleece itself. It is not known why Philip chose this pagan image, but theories include: the heroism of the legend; the great wealth Philip had made in the wool trade; the association of Jason with the Archangel Gideon; and the comparison of the quest for the Golden Fleece with the contemporary crusades. | |
In the Middle Ages, wool and cloth became a major British export. When tradesmen began issuing tokens in the 17th century, they used images that were easily identifiable as signs of their trade. The hanging fleece was a symbol for traders in wool, and can also be found in some English coats of arms, e.g., Leeds, Yorkshire County.Unlike the Order of the Golden Fleece, this fleece appears to be the entire (live) animal, and not just the skin. There was a large market at Norwich, so the Norwich Castle and a fleece were natural images for a 1794 token. A 1791 token from Rochdale, Lancashire County, shows another step in the woolmaking process with a worker at a loom. The predominant symbol in Kent is a horse, but draper and grocer Thomas King in Brookland includes the fleece on the reverse of this 1794 token. On many tokens, wool is mentioned as the "staple of England". From Dunkirk, Somerset County, a 1795 token contains this phrase, and features the factory of Moggeridge and Joyce on the reverse. In the same county, an 1811 penny token from Bath displays the fleece. The value of the token (only 240 per English pound) is indicated on the reverse, as is common with some other tokens of this era. The hanging fleece also made a brief appearance in Canadian Pre-Confederation tokens, on those of the Rutherford family in Newfoundland, issued in the 1840s. The Rutherfords owned two stores: one in St John's, and one in Harbour Grace. They did not deal exclusively in wool, but were more like a supply store. Including the hanging fleece may have simply been a matter of personal taste for the Rutherfords. The Rutherford coat of arms is on the reverse. Around Australia, the wool industry was (and remains) a vital part of the economy. The coat of arms of the City of Melbourne includes a hanging fleece. A draper from Tasmania, E.F. Dease, used the symbol on his tokens, advertising his store, the Golden Fleece. An oil company named The Golden Fleece used a standing (not hanging) bulky-looking sheep as its symbol. A certain U.S clothing company acknowledges its roots in the wool trade by using the hanging fleece image as a logo, referring to it as the Golden Fleece. A French Jeton of 1755, issued by Louis XV displays the Golden Fleece hanging from the mast of Jason's ship, the Argo. The legend reads "NON VILIUS AUREO", or "as precious as gold". Whether you think of it as the Golden Fleece, or just a sheep at the market, the Hanging Fleece is an interesting design with its history in a trade that stretches back to medieval times. | |
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