*Please note- This site search does not include the Vic. & Tas. BMD's, Lots o' Links & Worth a Look Books
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John Dyer
Poet, Itinerant Painter & Reverend
1700-1757
part 2a
In our own lives, we become involved with various Organisations, Schools, Jobs, Friends etc., combined with our surroundings, that we don't often realise, how big of a story could be made from our lives. This is the same with John Dyer's story, which was to include Wales, his poetry & the Wool industry, stemming from his poem 'The Fleece'.
In Part 1, so many other topics were incorporated into his story that were worth mentioning, that there ended up being far too much information for just the one page, as it was in the first part.
There are of course, many others who have been involved in the Wool industry, and their story could have included the extra information not added to John Dyer's Life in Time, but that would create even more topics from their life own story, so I've decided just to have a John Dyer part 2, focusing on wool & things associated with it.
So here it is, John Dyer 'Part Two'-
This page
1. Wool
2. Sheep Sheering
3. Fleece of all Kinds
4. The Sheepdog
5. The Shepherd
6. Sheep Stuff
7. Cave Finds
Next page
8. Weaving & Knitting (2b)
9. The Wool Trade (2b)
10. Wool Staplers (2b)
11. Textile Manufacturing (2b)
12. Machinery & Jobs (2b)
13. Merchant's Marks (2b)
14. East India Company (2b)
15. The Staple (2b)
1. Wool
2. Sheep Sheering
3. Fleece of all Kinds
4. The Sheepdog
5. The Shepherd
6. Sheep Stuff
7. Cave Finds
Next page
8. Weaving & Knitting (2b)
9. The Wool Trade (2b)
10. Wool Staplers (2b)
11. Textile Manufacturing (2b)
12. Machinery & Jobs (2b)
13. Merchant's Marks (2b)
14. East India Company (2b)
15. The Staple (2b)
Wool
In 1757 Dyer published The Fleece, his greatest poetical work. “The spirit of Dyer's Fleece,” says Dr. Aikin, “is truly didactic, and he has given it all the regularity which would have been expected in a prose work on the same subject. In his first book he is a breeder of sheep; in his second, a wool-stapler; in his third a weaver; and in his fourth a merchant. In all of these capacities his object seems to be serious instruction, and he leaves no part of the topic untouched. He teaches, however, like a poet, and neglects no opportunity of uniting entertainment with precept. He judiciously dwells most upon those parts which afford matter for sentiment or poetical description; and frequently digresses into collateral paths which lead to scenes of beauty and even of grandeur. He has also the merit of much local and appropriate imagery.”
The Works of the British Poets: By Ezekiel Sanford https://books.google.com.au/books?pg=PA297 Sheep farming in Wales dates to prehistoric times. There is evidence of spinning and weaving in late prehistoric houses throughout Britain, particularly in the later first millennium B.C.. Finds include scraps of fabric, loom-weights, spindle-whorls and bone needles, and the arrangement of post-holes may indicate they supported looms. A Bronze Age weaving comb was found in the 'Ogof yr Esgyrn' cave in Glyntawe.
The Romans probably imported the white breed characteristic of Welsh sheep today. The sheep at this time would have been much more variable than modern breeds, which have been carefully selected for specific characteristics. (wiki) The secret lives of sheep
A cute clip about sheep & facts like, how smart they are etc. http://www.animalsaustralia.org/issues/secret-lives Ewes fall in love with rams, have best friends & feel
sad when those close to them die In the Middle Ages sheep were probably kept mainly for their milk and wool rather than their meat. Sheep do not seem to have been important to the Welsh economy before the 12th century. The monks were granted extensive lands for sheep grazing and were the pioneers of the woollen industry in Wales. The invention of the water-powered fulling mill in the later Middle Ages caused an industrial revolution in Wales. The main centre of the new woollen industry was initially in south east Wales drawing on sheep from the monasteries of Margam, Neath and Tintern and the flocks of the Bohun family, which produced 18,500 fleeces in 1372. Fulling mills were later established elsewhere in Wales, particularly the north east and the Ceiriog valley. In 1380 the lordship of Ruthin in Denbighshire had 36 weavers. However, the period from 1350 to 1400 was difficult, with recurrences of the plague and heavy taxation to pay for the war with France. Between 1350 and 1500 an average of 50 fulling mills were operational. The reduced number was due to the unsettled state of the country before, during & after the Glyndŵr Rising (1400–15)
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The Woollen industry, Wales was at times it's most important industry, but often struggled to compete with the woollen mills in the north of England. There is still continued demand for quality Welsh woollen products.
After sorting the raw wool into different grades, it was often soaked in 50/50 human urine & water, then passed through a willy to untangle it & remove foreign matter.
Ammonia is found in urine and early Europeans often preferred it to soap when cleaning their homes.
Ancient Romans, placed vessels on streets as urine collectors. After the buckets were full from passersby, they were taken to a laundry & used for washing clothes https://www.smithsonianmag Medicines derived from urine can help treat infertility & fight symptoms of menopause. Stem cells harvested from urine have been reprogrammed into neurons & even used to grow human teeth.
Raw Wool
https://www.sanctuarywool Medical experts have long connected urine colour with certain medical conditions. Above, is a medieval chart showing the medical implications of different urine colour
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Each part of the Sheep, produces a different quality of wool,
who knew? Wool Sorting Process
https://textilelearner.blogspot Waulking is a finishing process that is applied only to woven wool (tweed). There were four parts to the waulking process. The first...entails shrinking the fabric so in its thickening a certain quality of wind and waterproofing is realised. Then cleansing the cloth & folding the cloth, the process of giving it tension after which came a rite of consecration. Waulking was a daylong project and once begun it had to be finished in one session.
http://www.thistleandbroom One Fish Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish & Count
One Sheep Two Sheep, each Leap Helps Sleep
The Book of the Farm: Detailing the Labours of the Farmer, Farm-steward ...By Henry Stephens
https://books.google.com.au/ Agricultural Surveys: pts. 1-3. Derbyshire (1811-17) By Great Britain. Board of Agriculture https://books.google.com.au/ General View of the Agriculture and Minerals of Derbyshire: With ..., Volume 3 By John Farey https://books.google.com.au/ History of the Wool Industry in England, the Yorkshire West Riding and Pudsey & Halifax. http://www.themeister.co.uk/ Benny Goodman - You Can't Pull The Wool Over My Eyes 2:35
The common consensus of the origin of the idiom "Pull the wool over your eyes" (to deceive someone) is that it has something to do with pulling wigs over your forehead, but maybe originally, it had something to do with sheep?
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They say that counting sheep puts you to sleep, but the best trick that I'd found in the past, was watching Windows 95/98, defragment, I miss that.
As it says above
(from 'Fine Wool, Sheep..' by Randall 1863),
Sheep with wool over their eyes, are taken advantage of in the winter time
(from 'Fine Wool, Sheep..' by Randall 1863),
Sheep with wool over their eyes, are taken advantage of in the winter time
Sheep Shearing
The word 'Fleeced' has been used as far back as the 1700's with its current meaning of
being 'ripped off' or 'swindled' Sheep would once upon a time, be washed before they were sheared, now, the fleece is washed afterwards
During the early years of sheep breeding in Australia, shearing was carried out by shepherds,
assigned servants, Ticket of Leave men, and free labourers using blade shears |
In early medieval times, Sheep weren't shorn
Wool was collected in 3 ways- *As sheep moulted in summer *By plucking it from their fleece *Collected where it had been rubbed off on a tree or rock. (wiki) In most countries like Australia with large sheep flocks, the shearer is one of a contractor's team that go from property to property shearing sheep and preparing the wool for market.
The shearer collects a sheep from a catching pen, positions it on his “stand” on the shearing board and operates the shearing hand-piece. (wikivisually) |
Shear them at Michaelmas, so that the marks of the scars may disappear upon them against the winter, and do not milk them later than August. (From Ancient Welsh Husbundry)
Michaelmas is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September (wiki)
Michaelmas is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September (wiki)
Before the shearing, the wool with us is almost universally washed upon the sheep. Some persons wash the sheep in the open sea, or in running water, but this is never so clean as when the sheep are first washed in a large tub, with one part clear lie, two parts lukewarm water, with a small quantity of urine; and then in another tub, with less lie in the water ; after which the sheep are washed, laying them always on their backs, with their heads up, in a tub with clean water; and lastly, there is poured out on the sheep, standing on the ground, a sufficient quantity of water, which is as much as possible squeezed out of the wool. The sheep are afterwards driven into an unpastured adjoining meadow, and remain there (to prevent their soiling themselves in the sheep-house) a day and night, not only till they be dry, which in good dry weather happens within the third day, but also, if bad weather does not threaten, some days longer.
The complete grazier; or Farmer's and cattle breeder's and dealers assistant ...By Thomas Hartwell Horne 1830 |
Sir Humphrey Davy (to whom we are indebted for this fact) thinks that the application of a little soap of
potassia, or pure caustic vegetable alkali, with excess of grease to the sheep brought from warmer climates to our winter,—that is, increasing their yolk artificially,—might probably be useful in cases where the fineness of the wool is of great importance. The complete grazier; or Farmer's and cattle breeder's and dealers assistant ...By Thomas Hartwell Horne 1830 https://books.google.com.au/books Elements of agricultural chemistry, By Sir Humphry Davy
https://books.google.com.au/books Sheep Shearing School
5:45 |
Frederick Wolseley, unassisted, went to Melbourne from Ireland, arriving in July 1854, aged 17, to be a jackaroo on his future brother-in-law's sheep station (N.S.W.)...Wolseley set to work developing his ideas for a sheep shearing machine. By 1872, he had created a working model. While living at Euroka, on 28 March 1877 he and Robert Savage (1818–1888), the inventor of various items of mining and agricultural machinery, were granted a patent. Another patent was granted in December; however their machine was not a success and Wolseley continued to work on it but without Savage. He made further developments with Richard Pickup Park and they patented an 'Improved Shearing Apparatus' on 13 December 1884.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Wol |
A shearer begins by removing the wool over the sheep's belly, which is separated from the main fleece by a rouseabout while the sheep is still being shorn; the remainder of the fleece is taken off in one piece by following an efficient set of movements.(wikivisually)
The Wolseley Sheep Shearing Machine Company Limited was a London-incorporated public listed company (established 1889) created to capitalize on a sheep-shearing machinery business established by Frederick Wolseley in Australia. Frederick Wolseley's innovations to sheep shearing machinery revolutionised the entire wool industry.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolseley |
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The first complete shearing by machinery took place at Sir Samuel McCaughey's woolshed at Dunlop, Louth, N.S.W. and that year, 1888, eighteen more woolsheds were equipped with Wolseley machinery.
Wolseley's machinery, was wound up in 1889 and ownership transferred to a new British company, The Wolseley Sheep Shearing Machine Company incorporated in London with a capital of £200,000
In the second half of the 1890's, Wolseley's business associate, Herbert Austin, turned his attention to car manufacture as a way of stabilising the Wolseley business's inherent seasonal fluctuations. His first attempts were among the pioneer motorcars of Britain but they were not produced commercially until the Wolseley directors lost interest in the venture and shortly after Wolseley's death, Vickers, Sons and Maxim took over the embryo business, Austin and the Wolseley name. This new business was incorporated with the name The Wolseley Tool & Motor Car Company Limited. After less than five years there, Austin set out on his own and built himself The Austin Motor Company Limited at Longbridge, Birmingham
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Wol Wolesley & associate Austin, moved into the Motor Car industry
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Different shearing methods have been used over the years, one of the more popular, is the 'Tally-hi' method
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In the case of powered shears, the movements used are those devised by Godfrey Bowen, in approximately 1950, or the Tally-Hi method, developed by Kevin Sarre and the Australian Wool Corporation in 1963, promoting the technique using synchronised shearing demonstrations. Sheep struggle less using the Tally-Hi method, reducing strain on the shearer and there is a saving of about 30 seconds shearing each sheep
https://wikivisually.com/wiki/Sheep_shearer First introduced in mid-1963, the "Tally-hi" shearing method was the result of a nation wide survey to see what could be done to develop a standard method of shearing that could be taught to learner shearers.(wikivisually)
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Shearers who “tally” more than 400 sheep per day when shearing crossbreds, or around 200 for finer wool sheep such as merino, are known as “gun shearers
In 1983, shearers went on strike for 6 weeks, over the introduction of a wider comb
2013, marked 30 years since one of Australian farming's most significant industrial battles, 'The wide comb dispute'. In 1983, farmers wanted to improve productivity by introducing a wider comb for shearers (wider than 2.5 inches, which had been the standard). Shearers feared it would attract cheaper labor from New Zealand, and was not in accordance with the shearer's award. Sam Beechey was a shearer at the time and was one of thousands of shearers nationwide, that went on strike for six weeks. https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/ |
Kevin Frank Sarre- Lockington, Victoria, Australia. (1933-1995)
Five times Australian champion, 1963 Golden Shears Winner, World Shearing record 1965 (346 merinos) http://www.shearingworld.com/oldguns/old |
Wigging- The removal of wool from around the eyes of a sheep to prevent wool-blindness.
Tar boy- The young shed hand whose job it was to put Stockholm Tar onto the wounds of badly cut sheep. Staple- The length of wool shorn from a sheep, usually a years growth equals approximately ten centimetres. Snagger- An old shearer who is past retirement age but doesn’t want to retire. Jumbuck- An early term for a sheep usually used by shepherds and shearers. Glossary of Wool terms https://www.geelongaustralia.com.au/nwm/education/article/ |
The two main kinds of Tar recognized in industry are coal-tar creosote and wood-tar creosote. The coal-tar variety, having stronger and more toxic properties, has chiefly been used as a preservative for wood; coal-tar creosote was also formerly used as an escharotic, to burn malignant skin tissue, and in dentistry, to prevent necrosis, before its
carcinogenic properties became known https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creosote Sheep dipping
https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/19058/ The use of sheep dips dates from the 19th century. Early dips contained a mixture of coal tar oils (phenols, polvcyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, etc)
Organphosphate sheep dip- Clinical aspects of long term low dose exposure By Royal college of Psychiatrists https://books.google.com.au/books?id=q5 Carbolic Acid—Being one of the principal ingredients in coal tar sheep dips
The coal-tar creosote dip, which is made by mixing coal--tar creosote or coal-tar oils and cresylic acid separately with resin soap in varying proportions
Sheep Scab- Edwin Stanton Good 1909 Sheep Scab in South Australia
https://www.pir.sa.gov.au/aghistory/ Coal tar, has been and probably still is, used in food colouring
The Perkin’s factory used to dye the nearby canal in a rainbow of colors.
When Food Dye Was Made From Coal Tar https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/coal Tartrazine or "E102", is a commonly used color all over the world, mainly for yellow, and can also be used with Brilliant Blue FCF (FD&C Blue 1, E133) or Green S (E142) to produce various green shades.....Various types of medications include tartrazine to give a yellow, orange or green hue to a liquid, capsule, pill, lotion, or gel, primarily for easy identification....Like many azo dyes tartrazine is manufactured using benzene as a starting stock, and was formerly manufactured using chemicals derived from coal tar as the starting material.....Tartrazine appears to cause the most allergic and intolerance reactions of all the azo dyes, particularly among asthmatics and those with an aspirin intolerance....Total avoidance is the most common way to deal with tartrazine sensitivity... Causes increased hyperactivity in the children...Tartrazine is among six artificial colors for which the European Union requires products that contain them to be marked with the statement "May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children"...also known as FD&C yellow 5 or Yellow 5
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tartrazine Tartrazine (E102), Annatto (160b) & Quinoline (104) all Yellow, are very dangerous food colourings & can be found in anything from margerine, to medicine
Artificial colours around the world
https://www.fedup.com.au/factsheets/additive Color Additives https://www.fda.gov/industry/color-additives The six colourings facing a ban.
Tartrazine (E102) Description: Synthetic yellow dye found in sweets, biscuits, mushy peas. ... Quinoline Yellow (E104) ... Sunset Yellow (E110) ... Carmoisine (E122) ... Ponceau 4R (E124) ... Allura red (E129) The Food Standards Agency recommended ministers call for manufacturers to remove six artificial colours by the end of 2009 and lobby for a European Union-wide ban. The FSA's advice to parents will be strengthened to warn them about the dangers of the E-numbers tartrazine (E102), quinoline yellow (E104), sunset yellow (E110), carmoisine (E122), ponceau 4R (E124) and allura red (E129). https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food While most food dyes did not cause any adverse effects in toxicity studies, there is some concern about possible contaminants in the dyes (28). Red 40, Yellow 5 (E102) and Yellow 6 may contain contaminants that are known cancer-causing substances.
Food Dyes: Harmless or Harmful? https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/food-dyes E-numbers (Colours).
The commons names for E124 are ponceau 4R and cochineal red A. E124 is a synthetic coal tar and azo dye that turns food products bright red. https://www.ivyroses.com/Define/E124 |
Why Tar on the Sheep?
To cover wounds on sheep, goats and guardian dogs to repel flies and biting insects.
Stockholm Tar (wood tar) is used for the maintenance and management of horses hooves, dehorning calves, clipping or shearing sheep and as a fly repellent
Coal tar is a natural substance, oozing out of the ground in places like the La Brea tar pits. Usually it is made by heating coal, inside a chemical apparatus. Most tar is produced from coal as a byproduct of coke production, but it can also be produced from petroleum, peat or wood.
https://labreawebs.wordpress.com/2017/09/06 Smearing tar on the feed trough is also a valuable aid to the sheep in combating these flies
Wool markets & Sheep 1901 The practice of smearing sheep with a mixture of tar or train oil, or Orkney butter, is still continued in this county (1819)
The Cyclopædia, Or, Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences,..., Volume 26 By Abraham Rees 1819 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=sUyhx Shearing & wool handling (includes video)
https://www.britishwool.org.uk/shearing The yellow colours can also be found in anything with an orange, orange/red, or greenish tinge, even make-up, Lemon drinks, party-pies, pills, the list goes on!
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Origin of the phrase "Don't spoil the Ship for a Ha'p'orth of Tar"
or today, in other words "Don't spoil the job by being cheap & not getting the extra materials etc., that you need"
Apparently, the word 'Ship' is a dialectal spelling of 'Sheep'
or today, in other words "Don't spoil the job by being cheap & not getting the extra materials etc., that you need"
Apparently, the word 'Ship' is a dialectal spelling of 'Sheep'
The National Magazine, Volume 1 By John Saunders, Westland Marston 1857
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=WF Sheep shearing is also considered a sport with competitions held around the world
Masterton in New Zealand, holds a yearly international sheep shearing competition.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/rural/268015/ The Tally Hi Shearing pattern
http://www.shearingworld.com/training.htm |
The naval service, or, officer's manual for every grade in his majesty's ships By Wm Nugent Glascock 1836
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=7tgDA Shrek, The Sheep Who Escaped Shearing For 6 Years
http://earthporm.com/shrek-sheep-escaped The merino sheep "Chris" shed almost half its body weight, yielding 89 pounds of wool = 30 sweaters
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews |
The method in Saxony, consists, first, in making the sheep cross a brook or river; on the second day, in the morning, they are again made to pass through the water, in which they are dipped, in order that the fleece may be uniformly penetrated; after which they are stroked,
or pressed down with the hand, beginning at the head, and thence proceeding to the extremities of their bodies. They are also led once, in the afternoon, across the stream; the fleeces are allowed two days to become dry, and on the third day they are shorn. The Cyclopaedia; Or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences ..., Volume 38 1819 THE SHEEP-SHEARING Ballard, Chas Johnson.
When Roses and Daisies are springing And Cowslips the fields are adorning; When the Birds on the bough sit singing, And welcome the sweets of the morning, Without the plow, Fat oxen lough, With delight on the flow'ry mead; The lads & the lasses a-sheep-shearing go, Dick, Dolly and black-eyed Susan, All deck'd with their best hose & shoes on The shepherd, he shears his fleece Sir, Delighted to find the dear treasure, Far richer than that was in Greece Sir, His substance, his life and his pleasure; 'Tis our cloth and our food. Our Politick blood, 'Tis the the life and the soul of our trade; 'Tis a mine above ground, Where our treasure is found; 'Tis the gold and the silver of Britain. The Village Opera, as it is Acted at the Theatre-Royal, Etc 1729. By Charles JOHNSON https://books.google.com.au/books Australian Shearers - Song
"Click Go The Shears" 3:19 |
In Sweden, the business of sheep-shearing commences early in July: some breeders there simply wash their sheep in running water, while others bestow more attention upon that operation. They put the animals in shallow tubs, where they wash them with warm water and urine, and afterwards cleanse them with pure water. After they have been thus washed, the sheep are allowed to run in a meadow for two or three days, or even longer, if the weather will permit; in order that the fleece may imbibe a new yolk, which imparts a greater degree of softness and elasticity to the wool.
The Cyclopaedia; Or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences ..., Volume 38 1819 |
Fleece of all Kinds
The most ancient flocks of sheep, which we have any records of, are those of Laban and Jacob, defined in the book of Genesis. The fleeces appear to have been principally brown, or spotted and striped, which was in all probability, the general colour of the flocks throughout that part of Asia.
The Cyclopaedia; Or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences ..., Volume 38 1819 https://books.google.com.au/books Sheep of a black colour were also very common in ancient Ireland. Giraldus Cambrensis (a.d. 1200)....the dress of the Irish at that time was generally black, the sheep of the island being of that colour....the common people wore garments made of the natural black wool.
The Irish used to wear black woollen garments, because the sheep were black.
Irish sheep were of the many horned variety, like those found in Iceland. They could sometimes have up to 5 horns
The Jacob is a small, multi-horned, piebald sheep that resembles a goat in its conformation. However, it is not the only breed that can produce polycerate or piebald offspring. Other polycerate breeds include the Hebridean, Icelandic, Manx Loaghtan, and the Navajo-Churro, and other piebald breeds include the Finnsheep and the West African Dwarf (wiki)
The Jacob sheep, most likely derived their name from Jacob in the book of Genesis
The early writers on agriculture and the veterinary art, describe various breeds of sheep, as existing in Spain: they were of different colours- Black, Red & Tawny. The black sheep yielded a fine fleece, the finest of that colour, which was then known; but the red fleece of Baetica, Grenada and Audalucia, was of still superior quality and "had no fellow'. These sheep were probably from Italy, the Tarentine breed, which had spread from the coast of Syria and the Black Sea and had now reached the Western extremity of Europe. Many of them mingled with and improve the native breeds of Spain, while others continued to exist as a distinct race; and meeting with a climate and herbage suited to them, retained their original character and value, and were the progenitors of the Merinos of the present day.
Sheep: Their Breeds, Management, and Diseases: To which is Added The ...By William Youatt 1837 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=iZ1e Population structure and history of the Welsh sheep breeds determined by whole genome genotyping
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/2786 Cashmere Wool, comes from goats,
not sheep How is cashmere produced?
Domestic goats are shorn or combed to collect the fine fibres, but wild goats are also a valuable source of this wool, leaving clumps to be collected during the moulting season when they rub themselves on trees and rocks to shed their coats for summer. Cashmere: A story of luxury https://www.woolme.co.uk/blog/cashmere Can sheep mate with goats?
Sheep belong to the genus Ovis and have 54 chromosomes, while goats belong to the genus Capra and have 60 chromosomes. The offspring of a sheep-goat pairing is generally stillborn. Despite widespread shared pasturing of goats and sheep, hybrids are very rare, indicating the genetic distance between the two species. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheep%E2%80% Rare hybrid Geep twins in Mayo
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/offbeat/ How to Tell the Difference Between a Sheep and a Goat
https://www.wideopenpets.com/ KNOW YOUR WOOL
https://www.baabuk.com/blogs/stories/349 |
The most ancient flocks of sheep, appear to have been principally brown, or spotted and striped
There seems to be little doubt that the Manx mountain breed represents one of the most ancient of the old English breeds of sheep
Loaghtan or 'Manx' sheep. Loaghton (spelled various ways) means
'Mouse Brown' Irish sheep, generally at least, were of the many horned variety...many-horned sheep sometimes of a black colour are still to be found in Iceland. The many horned breed common in Iceland and other parts of the north, usually with three horns, sometimes with four, or even five.
Maybe there was something that looked like a unicorn, once upon a time?
Icelandic Sheep
Color Genetics in Icelandic Sheep
http://icelandicsheep.com/archive/genetics Iceland is Green, Greenland is Ice
When Iceland was discovered, it was very cold & harsh, so it as it felt Icy to be there, it was given the name Iceland. Later, when the large glacial island nearby was discovered, the name Iceland was already taken. Greenland was said to be named by it's discoverer, the Viking, Eric the Red, as Vikings were known for their sarcasm. He was exiled from Iceland for manslaughter & to make the place sound more pleasant for others to inhabit, it became known as Greenland, but to the locals, it's Kalaallit Nunaat, meaning, the largest island in the world; lies between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean; a self-governing province of Denmark https://www.audioenglish.org/dictionary/ It would be folly to attempt the description of a sheep which would yield, in every country, the most valuable fleece. The circumstances of nations differ so widely from each other and their manners, their clothing, and their manufacture, are so very various, that the wool which is of the utmost value with one people, is very lightly esteemed amongst others. The agricultural system adopted in Bucharia, an extensive country in Asia, where sheep are cultivated with as much attention as in many parts of Europe, furnishes one of the most striking illustrations of this remark. In these western parts of the old world, the preference is given to white fleeces and that for reasons which are deemed the most weighty; but their Black sheep are more esteemed, because they furnish a kind of fur, which is much worn, and sold for a great price among the neighbouring people.
The American Farmer- JOHN S SKINNER 1828 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=XP 12 Unusual Sheep Breeds in the World
https://modernfarmer.com/2017/12/12 In many parts of Europe, black sheep are more esteemed, because they furnish a kind of fur, which is much worn, and sold for a great price among the
neighbouring people. The American Farmer By JOHN S SKINNER 1828 Black wool is generally not worth as much per pound as white wool, because it can't be dyed any other colour (1819)
The colour of the fleece should always approach as much as possible to the purest white, because such wool is not only necessary for cloth dressed white, but for all cloths to be dyed bright colours, for which a clear white ground is required, to give a due degree of richness and lustre.
The Cyclopaedia; Or, an Universal Dictionary of Arts, Sciences ..., Vol 38 1819 By Abraham Rees https://books.google.com.au/books To whatever cause the blackness may be due, it is certain that the casual appearance of a black-wooled sheep is viewed as a misfortune, for its fleece is less valuable than if it were pure white.
Chambers's Journal, Volume 55, Issue 2 1878 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=PdwX As soon as a black sheep is shorn, the fleece should be gathered up before any particles of the black wool become mixed with the white
Sheep industry in Canada, Great Britain & United States 1911 |
Baa Baa Black Sheep, By Rudyard Kipling, 1888
"Baa Baa, Black Sheep" is the title of a semi-autobiographical short story by Rudyard Kipling, published in 1888. The story deals with the unkind treatment that Kipling received between the ages of 6 and 11 in a foster home in Southsea. http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/ By the 15th century, wool merchants made tremendous profits with the aid of the "Golden Fleece" produced by Cotswold sheep
Hook's Original Christmas Box, etc By Mr. Hook (Jas) Vol 3 1811
https://books.google.com.au One Bag of Wool for the King,
One for the Church, then the Shepherd Boy who did all the work, only got a third, that's a hefty Tax! What about Mary and her Lamb with Fleece as white as snow?
The Oxford Illustrated Book of American Children's Poems edited by Donald Hall
https://books.google.com.au Did you know that Mary had a little lamb, is a true story?
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So it went from, the earliest sheep being Brown, Black & Spotted, which no-one had a problem with,
Then in the 13th-15th century, Black fleece had a higher value, because it didn't have to be dyed, By the 1800's, having one Black sheep in your flock, was a misfortune Because the black fleece couldn't be dyed any other colour, which limited its manufacturing use It's all about Money! Cotswold Wool Churches
During the medieval period the Cotswold area underwent a transition from small scale agriculture to large scale wool production. This shift, most noticeable by the 15th century, enabled wool merchants to realize tremendous profits with the aid of the "Golden Fleece" produced by Cotswold sheep. The gold in this case refers not to the colour of the fleece itself but the tremendous economic value it possessed. The prosperous wool merchants put back some of the money they earned into their local communities, often by building manors for themselves, but just as frequently by endowing their parish churches. The "wool churches" of the Cotswolds are among the most elaborate and architecturally attractive in the entire country due to the largesse of successful wool merchants........... Cotswold Wool Churches https://www.britainexpress.com/cotswolds/wool-churches.htm Fast forward to today, now, the poor old Black sheep, is in the centre of some sort of racist struggle!
Traditional Nursery Songs of England: With Pictures
by Eminent Modern Artists 1843 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=Sqhb BAA, BAA, BLACK SHEEP Three Bags Full of Meaning According to an article by the guy on 'Wolverton Mountain' (where they say "don't go") the history of the meaning of this rhyme goes back the late 13th to the 15th centuries when the Plantagenet kings beginning with Edward I started taxing wool. Black wool had a higher resale value than ordinary wool due to the fact it would not take costly time and material to dye the wool. One bag is for master...meaning the king and the one bag is for the Dame...meaning the church. These were in essence illusions to the taxes paid to the church and state. The remaining bag is the one for the little boy that lives down the lane...meaning the commoner or the sheepherder who raised the sheep necessary for wool production http://www.wolverton-mountain.com/articles/baa-baa Baa Baa Black Sheep was one of the first songs to be recorded onto a computer Mary had a little lamb, was the very first audio recording, on Edison's phonograph in 1877
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Wolverton Mountain-Merle Kilgore (& story behind it)
4:40 |
Thomas Edison / Mary had a little lamb
0:39 |
One of her (Sarah J. Hale) 'Poems for Children," published in Boston in eighteen hundred and thirty-"Mary had a Little Lamb." Mary's lamb has travelled much farther than to school, and has even reached that point when its authorship has been disputed. Quite recently in the "Century Magazine" Mrs. Hales claim to its composition has been set forth at some length by Mr. Richard W. Hale, who shows clearly her desire when more than ninety years of age to be recognized as the originator of these verses, In fact, "shortly before her death," wrote Mr. Hale, "she directed her son to write emphatically that every poem in her book of eighteen hundred and thirty was of her own composition." Although rarely seen in print, "Mary had a Little Lamb" has outlived all other nursery rhymes of its day; perhaps because it had most truly the quality, unusual at the time, of being told directly and simply, a quality, indeed, that appeals to every generation.
Forgotten Books of the American Nursery: A History of the Development of the ...By Rosalie Vrylina Halsey https://books.google.com.au/books Sarah Josepha Hale 1788-1879
https://www.womenshistory.org/education Sarah Josepha Hale (find a grave) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/434/s John Roulstone, Jr (find a grave) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11376 John Roulstone, Jr. (Geni) https://www.geni.com/people/John-Roulstone Mary Elizabeth Sawyer Tyler (find a grave) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/5673293 The True Story Behind “Mary Had a Little Lamb” https://modernfarmer.com/2017/12/true-story |
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Mary Had a Little Lamb - PAUL McCARTNEY & WINGS 1972 3:32
Golden Fleece was the brand of petroleum and related products marketed and distributed by the Australian Company H.C. Sleigh. They were primarily based on the east coast of the country.
Golden Fleece History & Collectables http://www.goldenfleece.net.au/history Roadside Relics Australia (Gympie, QLD)
https://www.facebook.com/Roadside |
Lessons from women's lives, 1800,
by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell https://archive.org/details/lessons The juvenile miscellany 1826, by Child, Mrs. (Lydia Maria); Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell; Valentine, Francis E. https://archive.org/details/juvenilemiscell Early American Cookery: "the Good Housekeeper," 1841 By Sarah Jos. Buell Hale https://books.google.com.au/books?id=1_Ek A Complete Dictionary Of Poetical Quotations 1855, by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015 Sketches of American Character by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1831 https://archive.org/details/sketchesameric The American ladies' magazine Vol.1, by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1828 https://archive.org/details/ladiesmagazine The American ladies' magazine Vol.2, by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1829 https://archive.org/details/ladiesmagazine The American ladies' magazine Vol.4, by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1831 https://archive.org/details/americanladie The American ladies' magazine Vol.6, by Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1833 https://archive.org/details/americanladie Godey's Lady's Magazine Vols 48-49, 1854, by Godey, Louis Antoine, 1804-1878; Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell https://archive.org/details/godeysmagazin Not Black or White, what about
'The Golden Fleece'? Jason and the Golden Fleece, plaque
(1700-1750) ITALY, Castelli https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/explore/collection In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece is the fleece of the golden-woolled, winged ram, Chrysomallos, which was held in Colchis. The fleece is a symbol of authority and kingship.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Fleece Jason and the Quest for the Golden Fleece
https://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/feature |
The Sheepdog
Collumella wrote in AD 42:
"What servant more attached to his master, What companion more faithful, What guardian more incorruptible?" The indigenous herding dog of Wales has origins so ancient that they have become a part of folklore and its full lineage is lost in the mists of time. It is thought that the Gellgi or ‘covert hound’ may be an early ancestor. Manuscripts relating to Welsh Law dating back over 800 years mention herding dogs.
http://www.welshsheepdogsociety.com/ The Welsh Sheep Dog
http://www.pastorescozzese.com/storia/stirpe Sheepdog trials, first introduced in the late 1800's, made the Scottish Border Collie very popular. Much cross breeding took place and the native Welsh type was becoming diluted and only small pockets of relatively pure stock remained. Historically there had been no record of the genealogy of these dogs and so the only evidence available as to the purity of their breeding line is their true ‘Welsh’ manner of working.
The Welsh Sheepdog Society was formed in 1997 with a view to preserving and promoting the ancient Welsh breed in its working context. It is the aim of the Society to develop the purity of the strain. Welsh Sheepdog Society http://www.welshsheepdogsociety.com/ Quarterly Review, Vol 42 1935, Sheepdog trials
https://books.google.com.au/books (Read) St. Ives: Being the Adventures of a French Prisoner in England by Stevenson https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/322 MANX. SOCIETY. Established in the Year 1858 for Publication of National Documents of the Isle of Man.
Biblioteca Monensis: A Bibliographical Account of Works Relating ..., Volume 24, By William Harrison 1876 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=L4c |
William Perkins in 1635, said "A good conscience is a man's best friend"
The Workes of ... William Perkins. The First Volume:1635 But, most people consider 'The Dog', to be man's best friend And Buffon wrote in the 1700's, that the 1st friend of man, was not only a dog, but a 'Sheepdog' The shepherd's dog in one form or another is to be found in every country where sheep, goats, or even cattle are grazed, and the history of various varieties as they are now known is lost in obscurity. *Buffon, who wrote with such authority on all pertaining to the friend of man, was of opinion that the original dog was a sheep-dog, "an animal sagacious enough to assist the shepherd to watch his flocks and herds, strong enough to protect them from ravenous animals, and ferocious enough to keep the thief and robber at a distance."
Shepherds of Britain 1910 https://archive.org/details/cu31924016410494 *Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon was a French naturalist, mathematician, cosmologist, and encyclopédiste. His works influenced the next two generations of naturalists Sheep-farming, as a successful speculation in Ireland, is largely dependent, as elsewhere, on the skill and devotion of the shepherds, while they in turn rest the competency of their craft upon the celerity and sagacity of the collie. Here Irish flock-masters are extremely fortunate, for the shepherds and sheep-dogs of Ireland are admittedly a credit to the calling.
Shepherds of Britain The Collie, is the most renowned of the sheepdogs, named after
the black faced sheep it tends The Border Collies, are from the
Border towns The Scottish Blackface is found in the Highlands and Borders of Scotland, Pennines, Dartmoor and Northern Ireland. (also known as, Highland Blackface, Linton & Kerry Ire.)
http://afs.okstate.edu/breeds/sheep/scottish The word 'Collie', means 'Black', as in coal The Blackfaced sheep were originally called 'Collies', So the dogs became known as 'Collie dogs' THE MEANING OF COLLIE The word "colley" or "coly" is used for soot, smut, coal-dust, for the blackplumaged water-ouzel, and for the old black lamp, in all of which the name is obviously given from the black colour. Collie dogs take their name from the blackface sheep. It is not generally known that these sheep were originally called "collies" or "colleys" The blackface sheep are the collies, and the dogs that tend them are in full called collie dogs
Shepherds of Britain 1910 The word "colley" or "coly"......., in all of which the name is obviously given from the black colour |
The Old Manx sheepdog, was a "holding", not a driving dog. It kept to heel, and when a particular sheep was wanted, the shepherd would point to it and say in Manx "There, spring, go and hold that rough fellow", and the dog would seize the sheep behind the neck, throw it down and hold it with its paws, never hurting it. These dogs, now extinct on the Island (Isle of Man) did not work the sheep as the Collie does.
Shepherds of Britain 1910 |
Manx dogs are now extinct on the isle of Man; they were described as smooth-haired, very big and strong, the first known to be black & white.
The collie was brought to the island by the Scotch shepherds who came over to take charge of the larger sheep farms. The Manx crossed with the Collie, having various colours Manx people sometimes carry a lucky sheep bone with them, incase they get lost
Manx is a Celtic language spoken on the Isle of Man. It is closely related to the Irish of Ulster and Scottish Gaelic of Galloway and was brought to the Isle of Man by settlers from those areas during the 5th century AD.
https://www.omniglot.com/writing/manx.htm Old Sheepdog breeds
http://messybeast.com/history/sheepdogs.htm Welsh Sheepdog – The Hard Worker http://www.petpaw.com.au/breeds/welsh |
The Manx sketch book, or Beauties of the Isle of Man, in a series of ...edited by Thos Ashe 1825
https://books.google.com.au/books Manx people sometimes put into their purses the lucky bone of the sheep. A young woman accidentally dropped one out of her purse before me yesterday. The bone is shaped like Thor's hammer. I have been told that if a traveller loses his way at cross-roads, not knowing which path to take, he throws the sheep's lucky bone before him, and then follows that path towards which the hammer-end points.
Shepherds of Britain 1910 Wales Tails: The History of Welsh Dogs
https://cdn.barkpost.com/discover/wales-tails/ |
The Bergamasco Sheepdog, looks like it's been photo-shopped, with its Dreadlocks
The Bergamasco Sheepdog has hair of three different textures that form naturally occurring loose mats, or “flocks” (strands of hair woven together, creating flat layers of felted hair), covering the body and legs. The flocks provide protection from the fierce cold and wild predators of the Italian Alps, the breed’s ancestral homeland.
Bergamasco Sheepdog https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/bergamasco The Old English Sheepdog, has the look, that everyone probably relates to as a Sheepdog
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All About the Icelandic Sheepdog
https://adventures.is/blog/icelandic How much is a Dog more generous than a Man; oblige him once, he'll keep you company, ev'n in your utmost want and misery
A Select Collection of the Best Modern English Plays: Vol. V., Volume 4, 1750 |
Ralph E. Wolf and Sam Sheepdog
1:26 Sheepdogs were so faithful, that they followed their Masters to Church on Sunday
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herIn every case a great dog bears a deep resemblance to his master.
I have never known a deceitful man to have a faithful dog. The leading, not the commanding faculty, is the strongest quality of a great dog. A shepherd's dogs should all be recognised as members of the family, such an arrangement makes life much fuller and sweeter. Prove yourself worth dying for, and your dog, if need be, will cheerfully make sacrifice. FROM THE CONVERSATION OF JAMES GARDNER Shepherds of Britain 1910 |
The person in charge of using these tools was called- A Dog whipper, A Dog noper, A Whipper-in, or a Scouter-out
Another name for a person engaged by a church to remove unruly dogs and children, was a Knocknobbler
"Nope" in northern dialect means
a knock on the head The Knocknobbler, Or the Dog-catcher of Worcester
By Bernard Cartwright https://books.google.com.au/books |
Following their masters through the labours of the week, they did not see why they should not share their Sabbath observances...........a timely invention came to the aid of the disconcerted churchwarden....under the name of "lazy tongs." ......the handle was not unlike the forceps or catching end, which was in some cases (as at GyfFylliog) lined with nail-heads or small knobs to make the grip more secure as well as more cautionary. When no convenient pew could shelter the offender.....the dog-tongs had only to be quietly taken off the seat.....and in an instant seized the helpless wretch around the neck or leg, and without danger or ceremony extruded him from the place. The usefulness of such an instrument must have been very great when dogs were more in the habit of attending church than they happily now are.
Shepherds of Britain 1910 A Dog-whip and Dog-Tongs were used at the Sunday Service
Another way of expelling such canine intruders was by whipping. In old days it was the custom in various parishes in England, in the Isle of Man, and in Wales to appoint a dog-whipper, to keep the shepherds' dogs out of churches.
The following is from the vestry books of the parish of Llandrindod: -- Dog-whipper as being still known under the name of the dog-noper. "Nope" in northern dialect means a knock on the head. In 1785, in W. Button's Bran New Wark, we find : "In some churches the sides-men gang about with staves and give every sleeper a good nope."
Shepherds of Britain 1910 https://archive.org/details/cu31924016410494 |
Country Life Illustrated, Volume 6 1899
https://books.google.com.au/books The first English dog show was held in Newcastle in 1859, and a more ambitious one followed at Chelsea in 1863. The best known of English dog shows is Crufts, which has been held annually in London since 1886.
https://www.britannica.com/sports/dog-show Famous Dogs
12 Most Famous Dogs From Movies and TV
https://www.everythingzoomer.com/arts Movies/TV Starring Dogs
College Hounds (1929)
The Two Barks Brothers (1931) A Dog of Flanders (1935) Lassie Come Home (1943) Adventures of Rusty (1945) The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin (1954–1959) Lady and the Tramp (1955) Old Yeller (1957) The Shaggy Dog (1959) Greyfriars Bobby (1961) The Littlest Hobo (1963–1965) White Fang (1973) Benji (1974) The Fox and the Hound (1981) K-9 (1989) Turner & Hooch (1989) All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) Beethoven (1992) Look Who's Talking Now (1993) Napoleon (1995) 101 Dalmatians (1996) Scooby-Doo (2002) Beverly Hills Chihuahua (2008) Red Dog (2011) Who Let the Dogs Out (2012– ) PAW Patrol (2013– ) |
English Shepherd breed founders
were the multi-purpose shepherds of the British Isles, brought to North America beginning in the 1800's. https://www.escbreederinfo.com/hom/general Snoopy is Charlie Brown's pet beagle in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. Snoopy's first appearance, was October 4, 1950
"Hot Dog" Dogville Shorts (1930-31)
3:00 The Dog (all breeds) By H D. Richardson 1852 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=6T0 British war dogs By E.H. Richardson https://books.google.com.au/books?id=EK The Dogs of the British Islands, J.H. Walsh 1872 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=HlY Canine pathology, or A full description of the diseases of dogs, Delabere Prit. Blaine 1841 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=YO4 Stories of Animal Sagacity By William Henry Giles Kingston https://books.google.com.au/books?id=aq British dogs By H. Dalziel 1881 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=Ti8MA Breeds of Dogs 1928 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=nklyETR |
The Sheepish Wolf (Merry Melodies cartoon) 1942
7:25 Old Fashioned Love Song (1975) - Three Dog Night
4:00 |
How Much Is That Doggie In The Window - Patti Page
2:07 Who Let The Dogs Out (cute dog pics)
3:17 |
The Shepherd
The oldest profession in the world, might not be what you think it is!
The very first shepherd, (as recorded in the bible) was Abel. Abraham and Moses were shepherds. King David was the best known shepherd of Bible history, he wrote the beloved Psalm 23 The Lord is My Shepherd
http://www.sheep101.info/ For centuries sheep have been an important part of life in Israel, providing local inhabitants with wool, milk, and meat. They were a key part of sacrificial offerings at the temple and tabernacle, and in the Bible were frequently compared to men, illustrating their dependency and helplessness.
“What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?” (Luke 15:4 King James Version) https://www.bibleplaces.com/sheep Jesus said- "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me" (John 10:27) The ballad of the Romanian shepherd
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-25713019 Stilt Shepherds of Landes
Locally referred to as tchangues, or “big legs,” the five-foot wooden stilts were strapped to a person’s legs and supplemented with a long staff which a shepherd used to direct his flock and as a support for resting. Perched comfortably atop this tripod configuration, a shepherd was afforded an elevated view to keep track of his sheep and watch for wolves. https://mashable.com/2016/08/13/stilt-shep The now partly civilised Welsh living in Palleg were ruled by relations to the chief lord (teyrn) of Brecknock in the administrative district of Cantref Tewdos, (the Red Book of Hergest suggests Ystradgynlais was later within the smaller unit of Llywel commote), which each had a number of maenorau and llys (courts), a precursor of the Welsh manorial system. These might be wooden forts overseeing villagers, who lived in basic clay or stone and thatch cottages, with herds of pigs in the oak wood and sheep and cattle shepherded on the unenclosed moorlands with basic crop rotations. Sheep were not so important at the time, but reared for their wool.
http://www.spookspring.com/Palleg/palleg.html Archaeology in Palleg 1283-1483
Snaking through the Palleg area from Ystradgynlais and Cwmllynfell manor towards Llandeusant are recorded drovers roads or cart tracks said to have been present in 1300. Farm settlements, sheep pens and lime kilns have been documented on many sites in Palleg, Glyntawe and over the Twrch near Clawdd Owen as dating to the 'medieval period' spookspring.com 5s had to be paid, for cattle using the sheepwalk
The owner (of the sheep) would be identified by cut marks and notches made in the ears of the stock. The appointed directors would elect when to gather, shear or send sheep out. This was a very ancient custom that was often exploited, so banned in most places by the 1540's...Visit Palleg today and you will see little change in the techniques of sheep rearing employed from the domestication of the first mouflons, but a vast change in the farming community.
spookspring.com Ystradgynlais is a town on the banks of the River Tawe in southwest Powys, Wales. (wiki)
A History of the County of Brecknock, Vol 1
By Theophilus Jones 1805 contains a list of subscribers' names https://books.google.com.au/books?id=KJATHsDnrjwC A History of the County of Brecknock, Vol 2 By Theophilus Jones 1805 Appendix 4 contains a list of Ballif's names & more https://books.google.com.au/books?id=9JDnAA National Library of Wales
https://archives.library.wales/index.php/mynydd Workhouse, Brecknock, Powys, Wales http://www.workhouses.org.uk/Brecknock/ Romney Marsh is probably one of the oldest and most thickly populated sheep districts of England. The shepherd here is usually called a 'looker' his duties being to look after the sheep all through the year....the looker was paid 1s. 6d. per acre a year, and might be employed by several different flock-owners, and this is still the custom here.
BACKSTAYS The 'lookers' or shepherds of Romney Marsh wear these flat wooden shoes over their ordinary ones when crossing the shingle which extends for some miles near Dungeness. The local name for this strange footgear is 'backstays' On the Isle of Man, before 'disforestation of the commons' in 1860, any one, by paying a nominal rent, might send sheep to feed on the mountains. A good many of the shepherds are Scotsmen. The Manx shepherds turn their hand to any farm-work, and the farms and flocks not being large several farmers act as their own shepherds, assisted by a son or some other farm-hand.....There are three kinds of sheep in the island : —1. The loaghtan, or "laughtan," as it is variously spelt (loagh is pronounced like the Scotch loch), which is the name popularly given to the brown flocks of the old Manx breed, though,....it is really the name of a colour, not of the breed itself. 2. A white sheep with a yellow face. 3. The keeir or black sheep, a mouldy grey (keeir in Manx means dark grey). The loaghtan, or rather lughdoan, which is the correct spelling according to Cregeen's Manx Dictionary, is, he tells us, derived from lugh (mouse) and dhoan (brown), these colours when mixed producing the shade which is understood by loaghtan....There sometimes occurs in a loaghtan flock white sheep with patches of brown, but when a flock of loaghtans is named it is understood that brown sheep are meant. They have two and in some cases four horns. A Short History of Enclosure in Britain Now and again an ingenious shepherd would amuse himself by carving the handle of his crook
In the most ancient period the shepherds of Britain wore a sheepskin cloak, which was fastened, as among the ancient Germans, with a long thorn. In the time of the Anglo-Saxons a tunic was worn, which has survived down to the present under various forms, as the shepherd's smock or " hamp," ...in the fifteenth century is described as simple and well contrived, " consisting of shoes, hose made of cloth, breeches, a jacket, and coat buttoned and fastened about the body by a belt. They covered their heads with bonnets of cloth. Shepherds of Britain
Some say the origin or "By Hook or by Crook", comes from The Prior's Cross
Royal Institute of Cornwall, Journal, Volume 3 1870
https://books.google.com.au/books?id=ochA |
Shepherd's Field
Caves where shepherds “kept watch over their flock” still abound in the area east of Bethlehem. Here, the Gospel of Luke tells us, an angel announced the birth of Jesus. Shepherd's Field Chapel A tent-shaped Chapel of the Angels, designed by Italian architect Antonio Barluzzi, adjoins the remains of a 4th-century church and a later agricultural monastery. Paintings in the chapel depict the angel’s announcement to the shepherds, the shepherds paying homage to Jesus and the shepherds celebrating the birth of the Messiah. https://www.seetheholyland.net/shepherds-field/ Why is Jesus called the Lamb of God?
https://jesus.christ.org/questions-and-answers/ 3 Insights from the Holy Land to Deepen Your Understanding of Christ's Title as the "Good Shepherd" https://www.ldsliving.com/3-Insights-from-the-Holy-Land Almost any kind of strong-limbed humanity can be employed in the common labour of a farm, but the sheep-tender must be born to his craft. Heredity plays an all-important part in the making of a good shepherd.....Flock-masters are too wide-awake and wary a class to employ any but a capable and experienced man in work that stands at the very source of their prosperity. There are boys who take to shepherding from other walks of life, urged by a natural irresistible gift, and they do well at it. But it is essentially a family calling. Most shepherds have as long a pedigree behind them as the sheep themselves. The work is handed down from father to son, generation after generation & there is a sort of family accumulation of skill & knowledge. The child is born within sound of the bleating of the flock.
Shepherds of Britain 1910 https://archive.org/details/cu31924016410494 Flock-masters are too wide-awake and wary a class to employ any but a capable and experienced man in work that stands at the very source of their prosperity
World's Worst Shepherd gives a lesson about sheep
3:19
A Shepherd's Crook was also used for
other things https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Vaudeville “To get the more excruciating acts off the stage as quickly as possible, an inspired stage manager apparently lashed a stage-prop shepherd’s crook to a pole and started yanking the most scorned performers bodily from the stage in mid-performance,” stated a New York Times piece from 1997.
https://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/ The shepherd was very ready and pleased to show his crook, which, however, was not so symmetrical in shape as those which are represented upon canvas. Nor was the handle straight ; it was a rough stick —the first, evidently, that had come to hand. As there were no hedges or copses near his walks, he had to be content with this bent wand till he could get a better. The iron crook itself, he said, was made by a blacksmith in a village below. A good crook was often made from the barrel of an old single-barrel gun, such as in their decadence are turned over to the birdkeepers. About a foot of the barrel being sawn off at the muzzle end, there was a tube at once to fit the staff into, while the crook was formed by hammering the tough metal into a curve upon the anvil. So the gun—the very symbol of destruction — was beaten into the pastoral crook, the implement and emblem of peace.
Shepherds of Britain According to the old system, Shepherds were paid a portion of his wages in kind—so many lambs at lambing-time; and these, when grown, he was permitted to keep with the flock. At shearing-time he was paid for the wool, and he had the increase of his ewes to sell each year.
The sheep fair of East Ilsley is one of the most important and most ancient in England. The charter for its establishment was granted as long ago as the reign of Henry III, and as the public-houses would not exist were it not for the sheep fairs, so the sheep fairs could not possibly get on without the public-houses. Over the Downs and far away the shepherds have to travel and drive their sheep, and as the fair begins early in the morning, most of the sheep must be there the night before, and the shepherds and the drovers have to sleep somewhere. So they flock within the hospitable doors of "The Star," "The Lamb," and "The White Horse,"... The chief fair takes place annually upon August 1st. You must be at East Ilsley by nine o'clock in the morning....More than 20,000 sheep are enclosed in pens upon each side of the street.......The passages in between the pens are filled with men in every variety of costume....Many of the drovers, with their knotted red handkerchiefs and general get-up, remind one of the London coster.....one of the dealers, in a velveteen jacket and a soft felt hat.....another in a long white coat reaching to his heels, with huge gold spectacles and white hat. A Short History of Enclosure in Britain http://www.thelandmagazine.org.uk/articles/ The Shepherds of Salisbury Plain, had the reputation of being the laziest men in England
It is thought that the great Wiltshire sheep fairs, are the oldest fixtures of the kind in England On a farm near Lewes, Sussex, the family trace of shepherds dates back to the time of Cromwell A Short History of Enclosure in Britain John Dyer in his poem The Fleece, written in 1761, in reference to the Leicester breed of sheep, states that they thrive best on a hilly pasture, consisting uniformly of rich " saponaceous " loam, or marl mixed with clay (not on gravelly soils). To this he adds that the marl, being too cold for the sheep to sleep on in winter (its effect being to cause the sheep to waste), it is necessary for the shepherd to sink a trench, and on the hedge-long bank Sow frequent sand, with lime, and dark manure, Which to the liquid element will yield A porous way, a passage to the foe.
Shepherds of Britain The Welsh shepherd of to-day will tell you that his sheep feeding on slopes facing south or west have wool of a much finer texture than those feeding on slopes facing north or east
Shepherds of Britain What Are the Duties of a Shepherd? by Beth Greenwood
https://work.chron.com/duties-shepherd-23576.html The Shepherd Breaking His Sheep’s Legs (when they wander)- Myth? https://pulpitandpen.org/2014/06/27/the-shepherd Or "By Hook or by Crook", may have its origins, in the time of Charles 1, with the two learned judges, 'Hooke & Crooke'
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Highland Shepherds are intelligent, companionable, and instructively conversable when they come to know you well. Many a weary league from the Kirk, their Sunday reading is often the Bible and Pilgrim's Progress. The shepherd with his trials and troubles is naturally short in the temper. If he is misanthropic, it is because he so seldom sets eyes on a fellow-creature; but only take him in the right way, and he is the most kindly of hosts and the most friendly of companions...Weary and soaked to the skin, he has to do his own cooking, and as he has neither leisure nor energy to shift his clothes, no wonder rheumatism steals upon him early. He knows the lie of the land well; but many a time when belated in darkness or mists, he has to sleep out in some cleft of the rock, on a couch of damp heather shoots, with a plaid for a coverlet. He is answerable for the sheep, which are periodically mustered and numbered. In the wild mountain districts of Scotland the shepherd has frequently appalling dangers to undergo from the terrible storms that sometimes desolate those exposed regions.
Shepherds of Britain |
Turnip Shepherd
Sheep (& Cattle) were to be fed on Turnips during the winter months to fatten them up, so the Shepherds would have certain responsibilities as to keeping the sheep contained, slicing the turnips, lambs kept separate etc. https://books.google.com.au/books?id=f6NAAQAA |
In Folk-Lore (1900) we read that "when a shepherd died it used to be the custom to put a lock of wool into his coffin, the idea being that at the Judgment Day he could thus prove his vocation, which prevented him from being a regular attendant in church.
Shepherds of Britain Droving livestock involved moving a mob of cattle or sheep from one property to another on horseback when they have been sold, or due to drought in search of feed and water.
The drover played integral in moving livestock before trains and trucks virtually took over the skilled practice. Who were Australia's Drovers? https://www.princessroyal.com.au/blog/ DROVERS ROADS
Drovers roads were the routes for droving livestock on foot to market. Many droveways started in Wales, and the drovers, many of whom came from Wales, accompanied the beasts on foot or on horseback. Sheep, cattle, pigs, turkeys and geese were taken long distances. The drovers used dogs to help herd the animals. http://www.swanbournehistory.co.uk/drover The Country Gentleman, the Grasiery, the Sheep-Dealer, AND
The Shepherd's Sure Guide: By William Ellis 1749 https://books.google.com.au/books?id=DRIAAAA |
A guide for young shepherds 1811. By Samuel Bard
https://archive.org/details/guideforyoungshe00bard The Shepherd's Calendar, first published 1579, by Edmund Spenser https://archive.org/details/shepherdscalenda Solitary as the shepherds' life generally was, there was one month in the year, and that the most beautiful of all the months, that of June—the sheep-shearing month — when they met together in considerable numbers to shear the various flocks. Their work was hard ; but there was much that was enjoyable in it, for it was a season of social merriment, which contrasted strongly with the usual solitary tenor of their lives. The shearing used to be performed by companies, consisting generally of above thirty men, and most of them formerly were shepherds.
Shepherds of Britain The Drover's Dream - Clancy Dunn
2:25 Mum's Shepherd's Pie
https://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipes Shepherd’s Pie: What is it and Where Did It Come From? http://irishnobleman.com/what-is-shepherds |
Sheep Stuff
The Blind Sheep An anonymous writer in Sunday (1907) tells the following story : --"A flock of sheep, which had just been bought, were being driven to their new home, when the shepherd noticed that one of them was always falling behind the rest and standing still. Every time that it did so, it gave a peculiar plaintive bleat. To his surprise, another of the sheep ran back to walk beside it, until they came up to the rest of the flock. When safely enclosed in their park the shepherd examined the loiterer, and found the poor thing to be quite blind ; so that was why its companion came to its assistance when it was bewildered from not seeing where to go."
Shepherds of Britain The Marking of Sheep
So strangely preserved in this Somerset village was one of which the following is a copy: — The Gierke shal give notice on Trinitie Sondaye after divine service is ended publickly in the Chuche that one score and three straye sheepe hav bin vounde in David Pugsley his bartone with a clippette in the ye lefte eare. Also that a redde cowe hath bene pinned by the pyndere of East Luckham. ear- marking in England in the seventeenth century From a curious Shepherd's Guide (the date of which is not given), under the heading of Matterdale (chap, xii.), Southey, in his Commonplace Book (1849-1851), quotes some interesting particulars as to the former methods employed in the marking of sheep in the English Lake Country...The subject of the book is given as follows : —" The Shepherd's Guide, or a delineation of the wool and ear marks on the different stocks of sheep in Patterdale, Grasmere, Hawkshead, Langdale, Loughrigg, Wythburn, Sheep-Marks and Tallies, Legberthwaite, St. John's, Wanthwaite and Burns, Borrowdale, Newlands, Threlkeld, Matterdale, Watermillock, Eskdale, and Wastdalehead. Southey selects the chapter on Matterdale, from which he quotes the following detailed descriptions of the marks employed, with which he couples the name of the farmer to whom the sheep in question belonged. Thus we have : — " No. 12. William Calvert, Esq., Wallthwaite. Bitted far ear, old sheep. M on the nearside; hogs, full Gripping across each buttock, and no letter. No. 17. John Sutton. Cropped, and muck-forked on the far ear; under fold bitted on the near; a red stroke over the fillets of the near side, the form of a grindstone handle. No. 23. John Brownrigg, Matterdale End. Cropped far ear, bitted near; a red stroke on the top of the shoulder; J. B. on the near side. The ear-marks are what are most depended on. The ear is either cropt, under or upper halved, under key-bitted or upperholed, muck-forked, or clicking-forked, marked with a three-square hole, etc.; and these marks are varied, by being either on the cropt or otherwise entire ear. The other marks have all their technical names.
Shepherds of Britain "The custom which prevails in the Snowdonian range, where thousands of sheep graze, is to make a tar-mark on the lambs when they are taken from the mountains in the spring, and to mark their ears when they are collected for shearing purposes in June. Every farm has its own tar- and ear-mark, so that they may be able to identify their sheep. The tips of both ears are cut off, and the knife is drawn lightly under the left ear for the other mark.The burning of initials on their horns is a common custom, but all sheep have not horns; Welsh sheep, as a rule, have very short ones. After shearing, an iron brand is steeped in hot pitch and initials stamped on their bodies, different farms stamping different parts." Shepherds of Britain
Folklore
" A child had been for some time afflicted with disease of the respiratory organs. The mother was recommended to have it carried through a flock of sheep as they were let out of the fold in the morning. The time was considered to be of importance. The attempted cure of consumption or some other complaints by walking among a flock of sheep is not new. For pulmonary complaints the principle was perhaps the same as that of following a plough, sleeping in a room over a cow-house, breathing the diluted smoke of a limekiln —that is, the inhaling of carbonic acid —all practised about the end of the last century, when the knowledge of the gases was the favourite branch of chemistry." {Somerset) Shepherds of Britain The Shepherd's Bottle
The little kegs or wooden barrels in which the shepherds used to carry their "cold thin drink" are still remembered as " bottles." The contents were generally innocent enough. It might be herb beer made from the small dandelion, the burnet, tops of nettles, ginger, sugar,and yeast ; or home-brewed beer of hops, sugar, and ginger ; some added a little malt. Others preferred to drink cider. Many of the old poets write of " whig," which was whey or buttermilk. Shepherds of Britain Earth-Stopping
Earth-Stopping is the stopping of the fox-earths on nights previous to the day of a meet in the neighbourhood. Shepherds employed in this work generally receive 10s. for every fox which is killed without "getting to ground " in the district under their charge. Shepherds of Britain Kildare Sheep-walk
To Kildare, crossing the Curragh, so famous for its turf. It is a sheep-walk of above 4000 English acres, forming a more beautiful lawn than the hand of art ever made. Nothing can exceed the extreme softness of the turf,....The soil is a fine dry loam, on a stony bottom; it is fed by many large flocks, turned out by the occupiers of the adjacent farms, who alone have the right, and pay great rents on that account. It is the only considerable common in the kingdom. The sheep yield very little wool, not more than 3 lb. per fleece, but of a very fine quality. Arthur Young, 'Tour in Ireland' (1777) |
The sheep bred in Glamorganshire, when sold and delivered into Brecknockshire... when the wind is from the south they smell it and, as if recognising their native air, they instantly meditate an escape.
In the west of Ireland the remuneration is unjustifiably low; but in other parts....shepherds are in receipt of 75 pound a year (1910), plus a cow and a 'follower', or calf. In Ireland as an aid to herding, bells were sometimes hung round the necks of cows and sheep. Some pastures are poisonous to sheep at certain times of the year. An insect called flounders infests the root of a plant, and if the sheep eat the infected root they get fat and die. If the sheep eat a certain herb they die from liver rot, or liver-fluke, as it is called. John Dyer, in The Fleece (1761), alludes to "pennygrass and shearwort's poisonous leaf"; and in various counties in England the country - folk call pennywort " sheep-killing." Michael Drayton (1563-1631) represents the shepherd Melanthus leading his sheep and playing to them: When th' evening doth approach I to my bagpipe take, And to my grazing flocks such music then I make That they forbear to feed: then me a king you see, I playing go before, my subjects follow me. Shepherds of Britain How a Shepherd told the time
A shepherd, after feeding his flock on roots where they have been " folded " for the night, will take them on to the grassy Downs, returning with them when it is time for the night folding. In order to do this he must know at what hour to begin his return journey, for he may have a long distance to go. If without a watch, and with no clocks within hearing, he resorts to one of the turf dials. If the sun fails him, and his dial consequently does not work, he has to calculate by dead reckoning. In some cases the old shepherds can make very good estimates of the time without either watch, sundial, or visible sun. Shepherds of Britain
Shepherd's Slings
The art of slinging, or casting of stones with a sling, is of high antiquity, and probably antecedent to that of archery, though not so generally known, nor so generally Shepherds' Arts, Implements, & Crafts practised. ... It was an instrument much used by the shepherds in ancient times, to protect their flocks from the attacks of ferocious animals ; if so, we shall not wonder that David, who kept his father's sheep, was so expert in the management of this weapon. Shepherds of Britain Flock Tallies
One of the old shepherds made a very remarkable tally for me, saying that his grandfather used one like it. It consists of a piece of natural wood with the bark on, about one inch in diameter and six inches long. This is hollowed out, and the ends stopped with two bits of cork. In this wooden bottle are placed small pebbles, each one representing a score of sheep, and the old sheep are notched upon the bark in the same way as on the ordinary tally. In this tally a flock of 613 sheep would be recorded by thirty small pebbles and thirteen notches.
Shepherds of Britain The Shepherd's Pastoral Pipe
The true pastoral pipe was a reed-pipe, not necessarily made of reed, but sounded by means of a reed or vibrating tongue. These pipes are of two distinct types, and the earlier of them seems to have been the double-reed pipe. To construct this, a small oaten straw was taken when green and one end pressed together with the fingers ; this was then placed between the lips, and the two sides, thus forced together, vibrated on each other under the pressure of the breath. Shepherds of Britain |
Cave Finds
Limestones and Caves of Wales
edited by Trevor D. Ford Bone weaving comb (Preview) https://books.google.com.au/boo Ogof yr Esgyrn cave, Glyntawe
Gazetteer of caves, Fissures and Rock Shelters in wales, Containing Human Remains http://caveburial.ubss.org.uk/inde The first known textile of South America was discovered in Guitarrero Cave in Peru, it was woven out of vegetable fibers and dates back to 8,000 B.C..... Evidence exists of flax cultivation from c. 8000 BC in the Near East, but the breeding of sheep with a wooly fleece rather than hair occurs much later, c. 3000 BC. (wiki)
Textiles' Treasure from Jericho Cave 38 in the Qarantal Clif
A total of 759 textile fragments were analyzed and catalogued. They are torn, cut, and patched, and many have been reused, sometimes more than once. Many are composed of several different textiles or of several pieces of the same materials stitched together. Others were cut into rectangles, odd shapes, or strips. All are small and worn.....Why were so many used textiles stored in the cave? Presumably, they were stored there by rag collectors or by merchants who collected them for the paper-making industry. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/738d It is unknown how the Navajo learned to weave. Some experts believe they learned it from the Pueblo Indians as the Navajo moved into the Four Corners area of the southwestern United States around 1000 AD. Others argue that the Navajo didn't weave until the 1800's. Either way, Spanish records show that the Navajo have herded sheep and woven wool blankets since at least the late 1800's.
https://study.com/academy/lesson/nava The British Museum collection has been described by Sieveking (1971) and comprises of a small polished stone axe -head of typical British Neolithic type, a stone spindle-whorl, a small flint axe-head or knife of blackstone roughly flaked around three sides and polished at the blade, a bone weaving-comb of early Iron Age type, a collection of nine bovid and deer teeth decorated and perforated, and finally a decorated horse mandible.
From- Limestones and Caves of Wales The earliest known woven textiles of the Near East may be fabrics used to
wrap the dead The earliest known woven textiles of the Near East may be fabrics used to wrap the dead, excavated at a Neolithic site at Çatalhöyük in Anatolia, carbonized in a fire and
radiocarbon dated to c. 6000 BC. (wiki) The 16th century saw a change in fashion as linen, satin, and silk became more readily available, while the demand for woollen cloth dropped away. The wool industry was in decline, and measures were needed to increase demand, improve the quality of the woollen cloth and encourage the development and production of new textiles.....The first "Act for Burying in Woollen" was passed in 1666 (18 & 19 Cha. II c. 4 1666), and the second, and rather more famous, in 1678 repealing the first (30 Cha. II cap.3). A third Act came in 1680 (32 Cha. II c. 1). Their aims were "for the lessening the importation of linen from beyond the seas, and the encouragement of the woollen and paper manufacturer of the kingdom."
The Act required that when a corpse was buried it should only be dressed in a shroud or garments made of wool. "No corpse of any person (except those who shall die of the plague) shall be buried in any shift, sheet, or shroud, or anything whatsoever made or mingled with flax, hemp, silk, hair, gold, or silver, or in any stuff, or thing, other than what is made of sheep's wool only." Exceptions were made for plague victims & the destitute. Failure to comply resulted in a £5 forfeiture. One-half of this went to the informer, the other half to poor of the parish where the body was buried. Buried in Woollen https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum Revealed: First Ol’ Blue Eyes is 7,000 years old and was a caveman living in Spain
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/ King Arthur’s Cave legend says that a giant human skeleton was discovered in King Arthur’s Cave on the Doward in the 1700's. The cave is shrouded in local superstition & many bones of exotic and extinct animals have also been excavated from the site.
https://www.visitdeanwyefilm.co.uk/ In the 13th century, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery in Sedlec was sent to the Holy Land by the King of Bohemia. He brought back a small amount of earth from Golgotha, the gravesite of Jesus Christ and scattered it over the cemetery of the abbey. Word of this soon spread and the graveyard in Sedlec became
the hip place to be buried....When the Black Death and the Hussite Wars struck in the mid 14th century and the early 15th century, thousands of people were buried in the abbey cemetery, so it wasn’t long before there simply wasn’t enough room for everyone to rest in peace. Around 1400, a Gothic church was built in the centre of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves that were unearthed during construction and the bodies were moved to a crypt to make room for the newly dead....In 1870, František Rint, a local woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to arrange the heaps of bones more artistically, yielding macabre results. https://wanderingon.com/prague |
There is evidence of spinning and weaving in late prehistoric houses throughout Britain, particularly in the later first millennium B.C.. Finds include scraps of fabric, loom-weights, spindle-whorls and bone needles, and the arrangement of post-holes may indicate they supported looms. For example, a Bronze Age weaving comb was found in the Ogof yr Esgyrn cave in Glyntawe. (wiki)
Romano-British Weaving Comb 3D Model
(click on link for interaction) This nearly complete Romano-British weaving comb with a length of 12.19cm was made out of an antler. Probably deposited sometime after 70AD as part of a Romano-British cave cult, the comb was found at the back of Victoria Cave together with, among other things, several spindle whorls. Accessioned in the T Lord Collection. https://digventures.com/under The discovery of dyed flax fibres in a cave in the Republic of Georgia dated to 34,000 B.C. suggests textile-like materials were made even in prehistoric times.
The oldest example of textiles yet identified by archaeologists is at the Dzudzuana Cave in the former Soviet state of Georgia. There, a handful of flax fibers was discovered that had been twisted, cut and even dyed a range of colors. The fibers were radiocarbon-dated to between 30,000-36,000 yrs ago.
https://www.thoughtco.com/the-history Ancient mysteries of Denisova Cave uncovered
https://phys.org/wire-news/ Sewing needles have been dated to at least 50,000 years ago (Denisova Cave, Siberia) – and uniquely associated with a human species... The oldest possible example is 60,000 years ago, a needlepoint (missing stem and eye) found in Sibudu Cave, South Africa. Other early examples of needles dating from 41,000-15,000 years ago are found in multiple locations- Slovenia, Russia, China, Spain, & France
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History The origin of Navajo weaving may never be known, so we begin with what we do know. From the time Francisco Vasquez De Coronado entered the Southwest in his search for riches in 1540, the Spanish were at war with the Navajo. From the records of these Conquistadores we have references to the Navajo and their weaving. The earliest fragments of Navajo weaving to survive the ravages of time are those found in “Massacre Cave” in Cañon Del Muerte, the canyon of the dead.
https://www.camerontradingpost.com/ Pavlov Hills in what is now the southeastern Czech Republic....the Society for American Archeology, scientists announced that,... contemporaries of the earliest cave painters of France and northern Spain, has left the oldest evidence of weaving in the world. The site has yielded clay fragments bearing impressions of textiles or basketry, which according to Dr. James M. Adovasio of Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa., and Dr. Olga Soffer of the University of Illinois at Urbana, push back the known origin of these technologies at least 7,000 years, to 27,000 years ago.
Find Suggests Weaving Preceded Settled Life https://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/09/ Caves of South Wales. Lesser Garth cave
http://www.ogof.org.uk/lesser-garth The finds here (Lesser Garth Cave) include sherds of a number of Middle Bronze Age pottery vessels; two bone weaving-combs of precisely the type found at Ogof yr Esgyrn; a bone needle; bone awls; a bone handle for an awl, possibly of bronze; a flint scraper and a broken flint pick. The objects, as a group, clearly attest activities connected predominantly with pastoral farming and, aided by the animal bones discovered, a reconstructed picture of the exploitation of sheep for their wool & cattle
From- Limestones and Caves of Wales A Cerecloth, is Cloth coated with wax, formerly used for wrapping the dead.
Traditionally for a Christian burial, shrouds were made of linen
In 1666, Coffin lining & Shrouds had to be made of wool, or a fine was incurred
A linen or other cloth saturated or coated with wax in such a way as to be proof against moisture, used as an under-cover for an altar, as a wrapping or bandage in medical treatment, etc., and especially (in this case also called cerement) as a wrapper for a corpse.
https://www.wordnik.com/words/cere There were five fibres in use at the time—silk, wool, linen, hemp, and cotton...Linen, which came in a range of qualities that made it accessible to both rich and poor, was valued because it bleached well and easily...So linen, which is woven from the fibres of the flax plant, became the norm for burials across much of the Christian world
Why England Once Forced Everyone to Be Buried in Wool https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/ The Buried in Woollen Act was not repealed until 1814
Other Cave finds-
Bone Cave, or ‘Ogof-yr-Esgyrn’, is so called because 42 human skeletons dating back to the Bronze Age (over 3000 years ago) have been discovered in its chamber. Other items including silver rings, fragments of Roman pottery, bone pins, and fine bronze jewellery have also been unearthed, as well as evidence that the Roman legions were stationed in this area.
http://www.showcaves.co.uk/caves Not a Bone Cave, but a Bone Church
Near Prague, the Church has a Candelabra and Chandelier, made of Human skulls
and Human bones! There is evidence of spinning and weaving in late prehistoric houses throughout Britain, particularly in the later first millennium B.C.. Finds include scraps of fabric, loom-weights, spindle-whorls and bone needles, and the arrangement of post-holes may indicate they supported looms. (wiki)
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