What was the Golden Fleece?

The Golden Fleece was the fleece of the winged ram called Chrysomallus. The ram was sent by the god Hermes to rescue Phrixus and Helle. Phrixus and Helle were the two children of the Greek king Athamas and his wife, Nephele. Athamas had grown apart from his wife and had taken Ino, for his second wife. Ino hated her stepchildren, because she wanted her own son to rule over to the throne. Nephele realized that her children were in grave danger because of the jealous Ion. Nephele prayed to the gods for help. Hermes sent her Chrysomallus, whose fleece was made of gold. The ram took the children and flew them away on his back. Helle slipped from his back and fell into the water. The strait where she was drowned was named for her: the Sea of Helle, or the Hellespont. The ram safely landed Phrixus in Colchis, a country on the Black Sea that was ruled by King Aeetes. There he was hospitably received and, in gratitude to the gods for saving his life, sacrificed Chrysomallus at the temple of the god Zeus. Phrixus then gave the precious Golden Fleece to Aeetes, who placed it in a sacred grove under the watchful eye of a dragon that never slept. Later on the Argonauts led by Phrixus's cousin, the Greek hero Jason, recovered the Golden Fleece. Jason recovered the fleece with the help of the daughter of King Aeetes, the Medea. Medea put Chrysomallus to sleep because she loved Jason.

Works Cited:

Jenkins, Neil. “The Quest of the Golden Fleece.” Classics Unveiled. 1997. Mythnet. 21 June 2006. < http://www.classicsunveiled.com/mythnet/html/quest.html>

Neil, G. “The Golden Fleece.” Jason, Medea, and the Quest for the Golden Fleece. 2006. About, Inc. 21 June 2006. <http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_goldenfleece.htm >

Stewart, Michael. "People, Places & Things: Golden Fleece." Greek Mythology: From the Iliad to the Fall of the Last Tyrant. 2005. Messagenet Communications Research. 21 June 2006. <http://messagenet.com/myths/ppt/Golden_Fleece_1.html>