Pitys
nymphA nymph pursued by Pan who was transformed into a pine tree — the reason pine trees moan in the wind.
The Myth
Pitys was a mountain nymph courted by two divine suitors: Pan, the goat-footed god of the wild, and Boreas, the fierce north wind. She chose Pan, whose rough charm appealed to her more than the cold violence of the wind god. Boreas did not accept the rejection gracefully.
In a rage, Boreas blew Pitys off a cliff. She fell to her death on the rocks below. Gaia, the Earth, took pity on the broken nymph and transformed her into a pine tree. Pan, grieving, wove a crown of pine needles and wore it ever after — which is why Pan is so often depicted wearing a pine wreath in ancient art.
The Greeks heard Pitys in every wind that moved through pine forests. The moaning of pine trees in a gale was Pitys weeping, and the drops of resin that seep from pine bark were her tears, still falling. Boreas, passing through pine groves, was said to shake the trees violently — still trying to punish the nymph who rejected him, even in her wooden form.
Parents
Unknown; a mountain nymph
Children
None
Symbols
Fun Fact
Pine resin — that sticky, amber-coloured sap — was explained by the Greeks as the never-ending tears of Pitys, still weeping inside her tree thousands of years after Boreas killed her.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth:
Explore Further
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godBoreas was the god of the cold north wind, bringer of winter.
Gaia
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