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) best horse I have ever sat on". Golden Fleece had training problems after his win at Epsom and was retired to stud without racing again. In 1981, Golden Fleece was given a rating of 99 by the independent Timeform organisation. In the following year, Golden Fleece was given an end of season rating of 133 by Timeform, placing him fourth behind Ardross, Assert and Green Forest. The official International Classification however, rated him the best European racehorse of the year, a pound ahead of Assert and Kalaglow. Pat Eddery, who later rode such champions as Dancing Brave, El Gran Senor,