 Sheep husbandry spread quickly in Europe . Excavations show that in about 6000 BC , during the Neolithic period of prehistory , the <unk> people , living around <unk> @-@ les @-@ <unk> near present @-@ day Marseille in the south of France , were among the first in Europe to keep domestic sheep . Practically from its inception , ancient Greek civilization relied on sheep as primary livestock , and were even said to name individual animals . Scandinavian sheep of a type seen today — with short tails and multi @-@ colored fleece — were also present early on . Later , the Roman Empire kept sheep on a wide scale , and the Romans were an important agent in the spread of sheep raising through much of Europe . Pliny the Elder , in his Natural History ( Naturalis Historia ) , speaks at length about sheep and wool . Declaring " Many thanks , too , do we owe to the sheep , both for appeasing the gods , and for giving us the use of its fleece . " , he goes on to detail the breeds of ancient sheep and the many colors , lengths and qualities of wool . Romans also pioneered the practice of blanketing sheep , in which a fitted coat ( today usually of nylon ) is placed over the sheep to improve the cleanliness and luster of its wool . 
