Greek Myths XS: Aphrodite (Venus) and Adonis

Aphrodite, goddess of love, had many children, but one daughter had a special place in her heart: the one she had with the love of her life, handsome Adonis. Adonis was the son of princess Myrrha, who had been changed into a myrrh tree after an inappropriate relationship with her own father. In this form, she had given birth to Adonis and it had been Aphhrodite herself, who had fostered the boy to adulthood. Inevitably, as he grew up, the nature of their relationship changed, which led to the birth of sweet Beroë, who gave her name to the Lebanese city of Beirut. It must be said though, that father Adonis would have preferred the name Amymone. Alas, Aphrodite and Adonis’ legendary love affair wasn’t meant to last. War god Ares got jealous and unalived Adonis in the form of a boar. Aphrodite couldn’t stop crying, and where her tears fell, little anemone flowers sprung up. Centuries later, high ranking women would still put cleypots with young anemones on the roof in the scorching sun, and while the plants whithered, the women would crie for a love cut short.

Adonis, Venus, Cupid, fresco Pompeï, Italy

Women climbing to the roofs with "gardens of Adonis", wedding vase,

Musée du Louvre, Paris, France

Did you know?

• About Myrrha and her father: See “Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh”.

• Because of her love for Adonis, Aphrodite was reproached by the Muse Klio. As a punishment, Aphrodite made her fall in love with king Pieros and he fathered Hyakinthos with her. (About Hyakinthos: “Best of Both” and “For the very first Time”)

• The “Adonia” were a midsummer festival in ancient Athens, where women would lament Adonis’ death.

• The other famous ancient site in Jordan is called Petra, which is Greek for “rock”.

• The name Amymone means “innocent” and is also the name of one of the 50 Danaid-sisters, sometimes confused with Hypermnestra (the only one who didn’t kill her husband), cfr. “Dysfunctional”.

• The meaning of the name Beroe isn’t clear, but could be a reference to the beauty of nature. Beroe would have been a mortal whose beauty was comparable to that of goddesses, while she was an example of modesty.

• About the relationship between Ares and Aphrodite: cfr. “Opposites attract”.