Golden Fleece hangs from an apple tree. Jason's helper in the Athenian vase-paintings is not Medea— who had a history in Athens as the opponent of Theseus— but Athena. The very early origin of the myth in preliterate times means that during the more than a millennium when it was to some degree part of the fabric of culture, its perceived significance likely passed through numerous developments. Several euhemeristic attempts to interpret the Golden Fleece "realistically" as reflecting some physical cultural object or alleged historical practice have been made. For example, in the 20th century, some scholars suggested that the story of
Golden Fleece (horse) to be trained by Vincent O'Brien at Ballydoyle. Golden Fleece was sired by Nijinsky, the Canadian-bred winner of the English Triple Crown in 1970 who went on to become an important stallion, siring horses such as Ferdinand, Lammtarra, Sky Classic, Caerleon, Royal Academy and Shahrastani. Golden Fleece's dam, Exotic Treat, produced at least four other winners. Golden Fleece began his racing career in September 1981 when he contested a one-mile maiden race at Leopardstown Racecourse. Ridden by Pat Eddery, he took the lead in the straight and won decisively from Assert, despite being eased down in the closing stages. Golden