The Argonautica Apollonius - The Argonautica is the best known work by the 3rd Century BCE Hellenistic poet and scholar, Apollonius Rhodius (Apollonius of Rhodes). It is an epic poem in the style of Homer, and tells the story of Jason and the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. But it is Greek epic poetry updated for the tastes of a more discerning and rational Hellenistic audience. Little regarded in ancient times, it has since come to be recognised for its own intrinsic merit, and for its influence on later Latin poets."The Argonautica" has impacted our culture from the Aeneid to Star Trek. The Golden Fleece has become a byword for 'an unobtainable object.' And who can forget Ray Harryhausen's classic stop motion animation in the 1963 film "Jason and the Argonauts"?