HMS Argo (1758) sea. The frigate was named after the Argo, the ship from Greek mythology upon which Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The Navys choice of this name followed a trend initiated in 1748 by John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, in his capacity as First Sea Lord, of using figures from classical antiquity as descriptors for naval vessels. A total of six "Coventry"-class vessels were named in this manner; a further ten were named after geographic features including regions, English or Irish rivers, or towns. In sailing qualities "Argo" was broadly comparable
Golden Fleece (clipper) of their voyages, the two ships arrived in San Francisco a few hours apart, on Oct. 29th, after passages of 128 days. "Golden Fleece" sustained relatively little damage for a ship with so many voyages around Cape Horn. Nevertheless, she had several mishaps. In 1857, on her second voyage, as "Golden Fleece" was entering the Golden Gate, she struck Four Fathom Bar off Point Bonita, better known as the "Potato Patch". "Golden Fleece" was run up on the mud flats, and made it to the wharf with 12-14 of water in the hold. In 1873, "Golden Fleece" lost all her