That being said, I will admit to getting some less than stellar Jacob roving. I'm not sure if the un-Jacob like fleece I received was from a less than honest seller, or an off sheep, but it was unpleasant to work with, and will be felted into something. However, that was one seller.
And where to start? First off, I love the fact that there are several colors on one fleece. Multicolors, one fleece. Being able to blend colors, spin a different color when you get sick of looking at the same one you've been spinning, and there's a nice ability to ply the different colors together for a nice effect. It spins up well, and knits up beautifully. It was the second roving I ever spun, and it was just amazing. My spinning was vastly improved over the "starter wool" I had been given. The dark colors also have some light colored pieces in it, giving it an amazing effect. Some of my first spinning, I ended up over-dyeing with indigo. It is a fabulous, almost black color, with those light pieces turning bright blue. A wonderful effect!
Jacob is also a primitive looking sheep, with often two sets of horns on any given sheep (male or female), which givens them a fantastic appearance. However, they do not have a double coat like many of the other primitive breeds.
Now, Jacob sheep have two modern lineages - British Jacob and American Jacob. British Jacob over the years were breed to be more of meat sheep, and are a "less" pure strain. The American Jacob, however, has not undergone any breed improvements, and are much closer to the ancestors of the breed.
The exact origin of the breed is still mired in mystery, but it's believed the breed began in Syria, and moved through Africa and Europe. Some point to Jacob in the Bible, gathering spotted sheep to raise, as the reason for the name. There is some research that British gentry kept Jacob sheep on their estates, possibly in the regency era.
One of my favorite reasons that Jacob sheep are awesome and worth investing in is that there this breed is being used to research Tay-Sacs disease. Now, this is one of those reasons that I often support local farms, as well as conservation breeds. A farmer wanted to know the cause of some lambs that had mobility issues, and eventually perished, and wanted to know if there were carrier sheep that shouldn't be breed. After some time, it was discovered that this was a version of Tay-Sachs, a 100% fatal, genetic disease that is found in humans (and it normally kills a child by age 5). When I took a course in genetics (that feels like 100 years ago), I remember Tay-Sachs being mentioned for several reasons - it happens more often in those of Jewish descent and it was one of the first diseases that the medical field tested fetuses for. Those at greater risk are those of eastern European Jewish descent. And Jacob sheep. And now, we have a conservation breed of sheep that is aiding in the research. And people think sheep are boring!
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| If you are looking for a good breeder of Jacob, I highly recommend Hill and Hollow Farm - www.hillandhollowfarm.com They can also be found on etsy at https://www.etsy.com/shop/HillandHollowFarm |
