Recent Activities of the Confrérie

The Aldenhaag Golden Fleece was on display in a show at the Drents Museum from March 6 to August 15, 2010, with a collection of gold from the ancient Colchis, home of the original Golden Fleece. Afterwards it was completely examined by Morton & Eden in London, The London Goldsmiths Guild and the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. This established it was of Renaissance date and it is now on permanent display in the Tiel Museum at Tiel in the Netherlands in a fine custom display, including a portrait of a daughter of Claus Vijgh, who was the man it was made for in 1559. It is one of only three Renaissance fleeces known to exist today.

Every year the Drents Museum in Assen has a festival where they show historical costume of the Netherlands, complete with the Golden Fleece for the Renaissance men.. You may see their listing of the Historische Kostuumshow on their Activities Page. One of the participants is seen at the right. He is wearing a reproduction Golden Fleece that seems very similar to the standing ram variety made in this area in the 17th century, but the ribbon should be red.

There is a magnificent Spanish book on the order called La Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro. This large (c. 12" x 19") leather bound book has some 600 pages of information and color illustrations. It was created with the full cooperation of the chancery of the Order and His Majesty Juan Carlos and is the grandest book ever made on the Golden Fleece. A selection of sample pages can be seen on the Toison samples page. It is sold out but available from time to time as copies are found. We currently have one copy available at $1,800. Another can be had from the Netherlands distributor for $3,900.

The fine Biennais fleece of the Spanish branch shown at the top of our home page was loaned to the History Channel for use by Phillip II in their filming of The Conquest of America. Helping create authentic representations and publications relating to the Order is one of our aims.

Two painting identifications have recently been done by the Confrérie for the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh and a collector in Texas. We attempt to answer all reasonable requests for information and find La Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro an essential work. Many friends of the Order hope for an Austrian volume some day soon, but it will take a well connected editior and a sponsor.

A bijou was loaned to Middlebury College for their theater production of The Bewitched by Peter Barnes in November, 2005..

In February, 2007 we helped the National Gallery in London to identify the subject of one of their Renaissance paintings as
Floris d'Egmont, comte de Bueren (1469-1539), knight no. 124 from 1505.



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Please send comments or suggestions to:
Stephen Herold.
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