Clytie

Woman into Flower

 

Though Clytie loves the sun god, he doesn’t love her back. So she sits for nine days, refusing food and drink, just watching him move across the sky.

 

Tradition tells,

Her limbs to earth grew fasten'd: ghastly pale

Her color; chang'd to bloodless leaves she stood,

Streak'd ruddy here and there;—a violet flower

Her face o'erspreading. Still that face she turns,

To meet the sun;—though binding roots retain

Her feet, her love unalter'd still remains.

 

Note: In art, Clytie is often portrayed as a sunflower. This isn’t historically consistent with the text, as sunflowers are native to North America and thus weren’t known in First Century Rome. And they aren’t violet. Still, it makes a nice image.