Daphne and Apollo

           In a previous post, I mentioned an author of Latin literature by the name of Ovid and his most recognizable work, Metamorphoses. Within the Metamorphoses, there are more than 250 myths! One on the most artistic inspiring myths is called Daphne and Apollo.

Daphne and Apollo statue at the
 Borghese Museum

        Apollo was the god of light and poetry, and one day he ran into Eros (Cupid). Eros was messing around with his bow and was striking people into love. Apollo insulted him in a way, so Eros went up to a rock on Mt. Parnassus and shot him with a sharp, golden tipped arrow to make him fall in love with Daphne, a beautiful nymph. At the same time, Eros shot Daphne with a blunt, lead tipped arrow to make her stray away from love and not want it. No matter how much Apollo had pleaded for her to love him, she wouldn't. Daphne was the daughter of the river god, Peneus, and one day as she was escaping from Apollo, she cried out to her father to let the Earth take her. Her father then turned her into a tree. Her arms became branches. Her hair became leaves, and she ran until her legs were rooted into the ground. Heartbroken, Apollo vowed that he would tend to the tree that once was his love and passion, but no matter how much he cared for the tree, the tree detested him and the leaves were made sharp. Daphne was turned into a bay laurel tree, and that is to be believed why the bay leaf is sharp, cutting the back of their throat when they swallow it.

The Borghese Museum 

       When I was in Italy in April of 2011, I was able to visit the Borghese Museum. The Borghese is the museum in Italy that houses the famous life-size marble statue of Daphne and Apollo. The leaves carved out of the marble are so thin that a person can see the light from a flashlight shine through them!