BR35007 Shepherd with Three Sheep

Pastoral herding of domestic animals has been historically significant with scholars who suggest that domestic sheep have been present in some areas of northern China as early 3700 BCE. Sheep were among the first animals to have been domesticated by humans. These sheep were primarily raised for meat, milk, and skins. Woolly sheep were later bred and imported to Africa and Europe. The Roman Empire kept sheep on a wide scale – during the Roman occupation of the British Isles, a large wool processing factory was established in Winchester, England in about 50 CE. The first domestic sheep in North America arrived with Christopher Columbus’ second voyage in 1493.