GOLDEN FLEECE, in Mythology, the fleece of the ram upon which Phrixus and Helle crossed the sea to Colchis, and which, being sacrificed to Jupiter, was hung upon a tree in the grove of Mars, guarded by two brazen-hoofed bulls, and a monstrous dragon that never slept. The fleece was carried off by Jason and the Argonauts. See ARGONAUTS.
Many authors have endeavoured to show that this fable is an allegorical representation of some real history; while others explain it by the profit of the wool trade to Colchis, or the gold which was gathered in the rivers of that country by means of fleeces.