Daphne is a minor figure in Greek mythology, a naiad, a type of female nymph associated with springs, wells, streams, brooks, and other bodies of fresh water. According to ancient sources, she is said to have been the daughter of the river god Peneus and the nymph Creusa in Thessaly or of Ladon (the river Ladon) in Arcadia, or Pineios, and Ge (or Gaia).
There are several versions of the myth in which she appears, but the general narrative appears in Greco-Roman mythology, which is that due to a curse placed on the god Apollo (Phoebus) by the god Cupid, son of Venus, she became the unwitting object of Apollo’s infatuation, who pursued her against her will. Just before being raped by him, Daphne asked her father, the river god, for help, who transformed her into a laurel tree, frustrating Apollo.
From then on, Apollo developed a special reverence for the laurel. At the Pythian Games held every four years at Delphi in honor of Apollo, a laurel wreath gathered from the Valley of Tempe in Thessaly was awarded as a prize. Therefore, it later became customary to award prizes in the form of laurel wreaths to victorious generals, athletes, poets, and musicians, worn as a garland on the head.
The Poet Laureate is a well-known modern example of such a winner, dating back to the early Renaissance in Italy. According to Pausanias, the reason for this was “simply and solely because the prevailing tradition says that Apollo fell in love with Ladon’s daughter (Daphne).” Most artistic representations of the myth focus on the moment of Daphne’s transformation.
1. Myth
According to Greek mythology, the god Apollo insulted Eros, also known as Cupid, the god of love. Enraged, Eros shot Apollo with a golden arrow and made him fall in love with the nymph Daphne, the virgin. Eros then shot Daphne with a lead arrow so that she could never love Apollo.
So Apollo followed her as she fled, until she reached the river of her father, Peneus. Apollo became jealous and put it into the girl’s mind to stop and bathe in the river Ladon; there, as she was completely naked, the ruse was revealed, as in the myth of Callisto.
She wanted her father’s help, who turned her into a laurel tree so that she would be safe from Apollo. Apollo then began to be sad. Some versions say that when Daphne saw Apollo sad, feeling sorry for him, she made him a laurel wreath (a circle made of laurel leaves worn as a crown) from her leaves. Other accounts claim that Apollo made the laurel himself, taking it from the tree.
The laurel tree became sacred to Apollo and is used by emperors within the culture. After the crown was used for all the winners in his games, the great heroes of the coming years would be crowned with laurel leaves. He also promised that she, like him, would have eternal youth where her leaves would never turn brown or fall off, but would always remain lush and green.
Some even say that he created this laurel wreath to remind him of the prize he could never win. Apollo loved that laurel with all his heart.
2. Versions of the myth
The oldest source of the myth of Daphne and Apollo is Phylarchus, quoted by Parthenius. Later, the Roman poet Ovid retells this Greek legend, which appears in his work Metamorphoses.
Ovid
The pursuit of a local nymph by an Olympian god, part of the archaic adaptation of religious worship in Greece, was given an anecdotal twist in Metamorphoses by the Roman poet Ovid. According to this version, Apollo’s infatuation was caused by a golden-tipped arrow shot by Cupid, son of Venus, who wanted to punish Apollo for insulting his archery skills by commenting
“What do you need men’s arms for? You senseless boy?” and to demonstrate the power of the arrow of love. Eros also shot Daphne, but with a lead-tipped arrow, which caused her to flee from Apollo.
Euphoric with sudden love, Apollo pursued Daphne relentlessly. He tried to make her stop running by telling her that he did not want to hurt her. When she continued to flee, Apollo lamented that, although he had knowledge of medicinal herbs, he had not been able to heal himself from Cupid’s arrow wound.
When Apollo finally caught up with her, Daphne prayed to her father, the river god Peneus of Thessaly, for help, and he immediately began her transformation into a laurel tree (Laurus nobilis):
“a heavy numbness seized her limbs, thin bark closed over her chest, her hair turned into leaves, her arms into branches, her feet so swift a moment ago quickly trapped in slow-growing roots, her face lost in the canopy. Only her shining beauty was left.”
Even this did not extinguish Apollo’s ardor, and when he embraced the tree, he felt that its heart was still beating. Then he declared:
“My bride,” he said, “since you can never be mine, at least be sweet laurel, be my tree. My lure, my locks, my quiver, you shall be.”
Hearing his words, Daphne bent her branches, approving his decision.
Parthenius
A version of Daphne’s attempt at sworn virginity that has been less familiar since the Renaissance was recounted by the Hellenistic poet Parthenius in his Erotica Pathemata, “The Sorrows of Love.” Parthenius’ account, based on the Hellenistic historian Phylarchus, was known to Pausanias, who recounted it in his description of Greece.
In this, the oldest written account, Daphne is a mortal girl, daughter of Amyclas, fond of hunting and determined to remain a virgin; she is pursued by the boy Leucippus (“white stallion”), who disguises himself in a girl’s attire to join her band of huntresses. He also succeeds in winning her innocent affection.
This angers Apollo and puts it into the girl’s mind to stop and bathe in the river Ladon; there, as they are all naked, the ruse is revealed, as in the myth of Callisto, and the offended huntresses sink their spears into Leucippus. At this point, Apollo’s attention is engaged, and he begins his own pursuit. Daphne, fleeing to escape Apollo’s advances, asks Zeus for help. Zeus turns her into a laurel tree.
The modern editor of Parthenius comments on the rather awkward transition that links the two narratives.
3. Varieties of laurel
The name of the nymph Daphne means “laurel.” While the story of Daphne is traditionally associated with the laurel tree (Laurus nobilis), nearly 90 species of evergreen shrubs notable for their fragrant flowers and poisonous berries are grouped under the genus Daphne, which includes the garland flower (Daphne cneorum), the February daphne or mezereon (Daphne mezereum), and the laurel or wood laurel (Daphne laureola). These genera are classified in the family Thymelaceae and are native to Asia, Europe, and North Africa
4. Temples
In ancient times, this forest nymph was worshipped and personified in various artistic representations.
Artemis Daphnaia
Artemis Daphnaia, who had her temple among the Lacedaemonians, in a place called Hypsoi in ancient times, on the slopes of Mount Cnacadion, near the Spartan border, had her own sacred laurel trees.
Apollo Daphnephoros, Eretria
In Eretria, the identity of a temple excavated from the 7th and 6th centuries BC dedicated to Apollo Daphnephoros, “Apollo, bearer of laurel” or “bearer of Daphne,” a “place where citizens must take the oath,” is identified in the inscriptions.
