Jason with the Golden Fleece (Thorvaldsen) from the 3rd century BC depicts Jason removing the Golden Fleece from the sacred tree. Thorvaldsen's work was initially executed for the Copenhagen Academy to demonstrate his progress; a marble version was subsequently commissioned by Thomas Hope, a wealthy English art patron. When Hope's eventual heirs dispersed his collection at Deepdene, Surrey, in 1917, it was acquired by Copenhagen's Thorvaldsen Museum at auction. Considered to be Thorvaldsen's breakthrough work, the statue's theme stems from a drawing of "Jason and the Golden Fleece" by Asmus Jacob Carstens but the esthetic of the nude figure is also inspired by the Apollo Belvedere
Golden Fleece (horse) and Pebbles, maintained the view for the rest of his life that Golden Fleece was the best horse he had ever ridden. In their book "A Century of Champions", John Randall and Tony Morris rated Golden Fleece as an "average" Derby winner and the seventeenth best Irish racehorse of the 20th century. Golden Fleece stood at the Coolmore Stud, Ireland for just one season. He died from complications after intestinal cancer surgery in March 1984. Golden Fleece (horse) Golden Fleece (1979–1984) was an American-bred and Irish-trained Thoroughbred race horse and sire. In a career which consisted of only four races,