![]() ![]() The myth of Myrrha was one of 24 tales retold in Tales from Ovid by English poet Ted Hughes. In the play Sardanapalus by Byron, a character named Myrrha appeared, whom critics interpreted as a symbol of Byron's dream of romantic love. She was mentioned in the Divine Comedy by Dante, was an inspiration for Mirra by Vittorio Alfieri, and was alluded to in Mathilda by Mary Shelley. In post-classical times, Myrrha has had widespread influence in Western culture. A translation of Ovid's Myrrha, by English poet John Dryden in 1700, has been interpreted as a metaphor for British politics of the time, linking Myrrha to Mary II and Cinyras to James II. It has been suggested that the taboo of incest marks the difference between culture and nature and that Ovid's version of Myrrha showed this. Critical interpretation of the myth has considered Myrrha's refusal of conventional sexual relations to have provoked her incest, with the ensuing transformation to tree as a silencing punishment. Several alternate versions appeared in the Bibliotheca, the Fabulae of Hyginus, and the Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis, with major variations depicting Myrrha's father as the Assyrian king Theias or depicting Aphrodite as having engineered the tragic liaison. The most familiar form of the myth was recounted in the Metamorphoses of Ovid, and the story was the subject of the most famous work (now lost) of the poet Helvius Cinna. According to legend, the aromatic exudings of the myrrh tree are Myrrha's tears. ![]() While in plant form, Myrrha gives birth to Adonis. ![]() They take pity on her and transform her into a myrrh tree. ![]() She flees across Arabia and, after nine months, turns to the gods for help. After discovering her identity, Cinyras draws his sword and pursues Myrrha. Myrrha falls in love with her father and tricks him into sexual intercourse. The myth details the incestuous relationship between Myrrha and her father, Cinyras. Although the tale of Adonis has Semitic roots, it is uncertain where the myth of Myrrha emerged from, though it was probably from Cyprus. She was transformed into a myrrh tree after having had intercourse with her father, and gave birth to Adonis in tree form. Myrrha ( Greek: Μύρρα, Mýrra), also known as Smyrna (Greek: Σμύρνα, Smýrna), is the mother of Adonis in Greek mythology. Marcantonio Franceschini - The Birth of Adonis, 1690 ![]()
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