I WAS surprised to read Robert Thould's letter about Eof being a shepherd.

He says this is stated in the foundation charter for Evesham Abbey, but the charter mentions neither Eof nor the Vision. He says it's stated in an Old English Life of St Ecgwin, but the standard lives say Eof was a swineherd. I suspect the confusion comes from a letter, apparently written by Ecgwin, which says "....primum cuidam pastori gregum....", and the Acta Sanctorum (Lives of the Saints) which states something similar: "....pastores gregum....". The Latin means either a shepherd or a herdsman.

The story that Eof was a swineherd goes back at least to William of Malmesbury, writing in the 12th century, while the obverse of the conventual seal of Evesham Abbey clearly shows stylised pigs rather than sheep. The monks of the Abbey, then clearly thought Eof kept pigs.

It is true, though, that sheep have proved more valuable to the town than pigs. Sheep have been kept in the Vale since at least Roman times, and medieval Evesham was an important centre of wool-production. Some readers may remember the old Evesham inns called the Woolpack and the Golden Fleece (the former is now flats, while latter was demolished in September 1929). Strangely, there was an inn called The Pig or The Hog.

STAN BROTHERTON, Badsey Lane, Evesham.