The Lost Flock

October 2, 2023
In this pastoral debut, shepherd Cooper introduces readers to a “breed of little short-tailed sheep known as the Orkney Boreray, that are now thriving on seven farms and crofts in Orkney,” an archipelago in Scotland. One of the few surviving examples of “primitive sheep,” so-called because they have changed very little genetically for thousands of years, this breed was down to one small flock in 2013 when Cooper, a knitting enthusiast interested in the production of wool, became the sole custodian of the lineage after she decided to make a drastic transition from housewife to sheep farmer. Forty years ago, when all other Boreray sheep were registered by the Rare Breed Survival Trust, this flock’s ancestors, located in the Highlands (and thus too remote to track down), were not included in the official register. They continued to evolve in isolation, maintaining to this day wild traits that produce a uniquely fine fleece. Cooper delves into prehistory, including several significant Neolithic archaeological finds that reveal how ancient shepherds “utilized the meat, skin, horn and bone of slaughtered sheep,” something she has sought to do herself in an attempt at sustainability. Cooper’s account combines beautiful descriptions of the landscape of Orkney with a meticulously researched history of shepherding and wool in the Highlands. The result enchants.