Baucis and Philemon
heroBaucis and Philemon were a poor elderly couple who unknowingly hosted Zeus and Hermes — the only household to offer hospitality, rewarded while their inhospitable neighbours were destroyed.
The Myth
Zeus and Hermes, disguised as travellers, were turned away by every house in Phrygia. Only the aged Baucis and Philemon welcomed them into their humble cottage, offering their last food and wine. The jug miraculously refilled. The gods revealed themselves, flooded the valley to punish the inhospitable, and transformed the couple's cottage into a golden temple. They asked only to serve as priests and to die at the same moment. When they finally died, they were transformed into intertwining trees — an oak and a linden.
Parents
Unknown
Symbols
Fun Fact
The twin trees of Baucis and Philemon became the enduring symbol of love that outlasts death — still cited at weddings.
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