Editing Myrrha

{{Short description|Character in Greek mythology}}
{{about|the Greek myth|other uses|Myrrha (disambiguation)}}
{{good article}}

[[File:'Birth of Adonis', oil on copper painting by Marcantonio Franceschini, c. 1685-90, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden.jpg|300px|thumb|[[Marcantonio Franceschini]] - ''The Birth of Adonis'', 1690]]

'''Myrrha''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|ɪər|ə}};<ref>{{Cite Collins Dictionary|Myrrha}}</ref> {{langx|grc|Μύρρα|Mýrrha}}), also known as '''Smyrna''' ({{langx|grc|Σμύρνα|Smýrna}}), is the mother of [[Adonis]] in [[Greek mythology]]. She was transformed into a [[myrrh]] tree after having intercourse with her father, and gave birth to Adonis in tree form. Although the tale of Adonis has [[Ancient Semitic religion|Semitic]] roots, it is uncertain where the myth of Myrrha emerged from, though it was probably from [[Cyprus]].

The myth details the [[incest]]uous relationship between Myrrha and her father, [[Cinyras]]. Myrrha falls in love with her father and tricks him into sexual intercourse. After discovering her identity, Cinyras draws his sword and pursues Myrrha. She flees across Arabia and, after nine months, turns to the gods for help. They take pity on her and transform her into a [[myrrh]] tree. While in plant form, Myrrha gives birth to Adonis. According to legend, the aromatic [[Exudate#Plant_exudates|exudate]] of the myrrh tree are Myrrha's tears.

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]]. Several alternate versions appeared in the ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'', the ''Fabulae'' of [[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], and the ''Metamorphoses'' of [[Antoninus Liberalis]], with major variations depicting Myrrha's father as the [[Assyria]]n king [[Theias]] or depicting [[Aphrodite]] as having engineered the tragic liaison. 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. 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. 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 of England|Mary II]] and Cinyras to [[James II of England|James II]].

In post-classical times, Myrrha has had widespread influence in Western culture. She was mentioned in the ''[[Divine Comedy]]'' by [[Dante]], was an inspiration for ''Mirra'' by [[Vittorio Alfieri]], and was alluded to in ''[[Mathilda (novella)|Mathilda]]'' by [[Mary Shelley]]. In the play ''[[Sardanapalus (play)|Sardanapalus]]'' by [[Lord Byron|Byron]], a character named Myrrha appeared, whom critics interpreted as a symbol of Byron's dream of romantic love. The myth of Myrrha was one of 24 tales retold in ''[[Tales from Ovid]]'' by English poet [[Ted Hughes]]. Her story was the focal point of [[Frank Bidart]]'s long poem ''The Second Hour of the Night''. In art, Myrrha's seduction of her father has been illustrated by German [[Engraving|engraver]] [[Virgil Solis]], her tree-metamorphosis by French engraver [[Bernard Picart]] and Italian painter [[Marcantonio Franceschini]], while French engraver [[Gustave Doré]] chose to depict Myrrha in Hell as a part of his series of engravings for Dante's ''Divine Comedy''. In music, she has appeared in pieces by [[John Philip Sousa|Sousa]] and [[Maurice Ravel|Ravel]]. She was also the inspiration for several species' scientific names and an asteroid.

==Origin and etymology==

[[File:Trace route for myth of Myrrha.jpg|240px|thumb|A possible route for the Myrrha myth's spread: the red is certain, the orange uncertain.]]

The myth of Myrrha is closely linked to that of her son, Adonis, which has been easier to trace. ''Adonis'' is the [[Greece|Hellenized]] form of the [[Phoenicia]]n word "''adoni''", meaning "''my lord''".<ref name="Grimal94-95" /> It is believed that the cult of [[Adonis]] was known to the Greeks from around the sixth century B.C., but it is unquestionable that they became aware of it through contact with Cyprus.<ref name="Grimal94-95">{{Harvnb|Grimal|1974|pp=94–95}}</ref> Around this time, the cult of Adonis is noted in the [[Book of Ezekiel]] in [[Jerusalem]], though under the [[Babylon]]ian name [[Tammuz (deity)|Tammuz]].<ref name="Grimal94-95" /><ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezk.%208:14;&version=ESV; Ezekiel 8:14]</ref>

Adonis originally was a Phoenician god of fertility representing the spirit of vegetation. It is further speculated that he was an avatar of the version of [[Ba'al]], worshipped in [[Ugarit]]. It is likely that lack of clarity concerning whether Myrrha was called Smyrna, and who her father was, originated in Cyprus before the Greeks first encountered the myth. However, it is clear that the Greeks added much to the Adonis-Myrrha story, before it was first recorded by classical scholars.<ref name="Grimal94-95" />

[[File:MyrrhEssentialOil.png|thumb|left|180px|Myrrh, the precious embalming resin of antiquity.]]

Over the centuries Myrrha, the girl, and myrrh, the fragrance, have been linked etymologically. Myrrh was precious in the ancient world, and was used for embalming, medicine, perfume, and incense. The [[Modern English]] word ''[[myrrh]]'' ([[Old English]]: ''myrra'') derives from the [[Latin]] ''Myrrha'' (or ''murrha'' or ''murra'', all are synonymous Latin words for the tree substance).<ref name="Watson736">{{Harvnb|Watson|1976|p=736}}</ref> The Latin ''Myrrha'' originated from the [[Ancient Greek]] ''múrrā'', but, ultimately, the word is of Semitic origin, with roots in the [[Arabic]] ''murr'', the [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] ''mōr'', and the [[Aramaic]] ''mūrā'', all meaning "[[bitter (taste)|bitter]]"<ref name="Britannica vol 8">{{cite encyclopedia | encyclopedia = The New Encyclopædia Britannica: Micropædia | title = myrrh | edition = 15th | year = 2003 | publisher = Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. | volume = 8 | location = U.S.A. | pages = 467}}</ref> as well as referring to the plant.<ref name="Oxford1888">{{Harvnb|Oxford|1971|p=1888}}</ref><ref name="Onions600">{{Harvnb|Onions|Friedrichsen|Burchfield|1966|p=600}}</ref> Regarding ''smyrna'', the word is a Greek dialectic form of ''myrrha''.<ref name="Park212">{{Harvnb|Park|Taylor|1858|p=212}}</ref>

In the Bible, myrrh is referenced as one of the most desirable fragrances, and though mentioned alongside [[frankincense]], it is usually more expensive.<ref name="Musselman194" />{{efn|The word "frankincense" means "fine incense".<ref name='Smithsonian 1986'>{{cite journal | title = Points of origin | journal = Smithsonian | date = December 1986 | first = Lionel | last = Casson | volume = 17 | issue = 9 | pages = 148–152}}</ref>}} Several [[Old Testament]] passages refer to myrrh. In the [[Song of Solomon]], which according to scholars dates to either the tenth century B.C. as a Hebrew oral tradition<ref>{{Harvnb|Noegel|Rendsburg|2009|p=184}}</ref> or to the [[Babylonian captivity]] in the 6th century B.C.,<ref>{{Harvnb|Coogan|2009|p=394}}</ref> myrrh is referenced seven times, making the Song of Solomon the passage in the Old Testament referring to myrrh the most, often with erotic overtones.<ref name="Musselman194">{{Harvnb|Musselman|2007|pp=194–197}}</ref><ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=song%20of%20solomon%205:5&version=ESV Song of Solomon 5:5]</ref><ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=song%20of%20solomon%205:13&version=ESV Song of Solomon 5:13]</ref> In the [[New Testament]] the substance is famously associated with the birth of Christ when the magi presented their gifts of "gold, frankincense, and myrrh".<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%202:10-11&version=ESV Matthew 2:10-11]</ref>{{efn|Myrrh is not mentioned in the [[Qur'an]].<ref name="Musselman194" />}}
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==Myth==

===Ovid's version===

[[File:Virgil Solis - Myrrha Cinyras.jpg|350px|thumb|[[Virgil Solis]] – ''Myrrha and Cinyras'']]

Published in 8 A.D. the ''Metamorphoses'' of Ovid has become one of the most influential poems by writers in Latin.<ref name="Dollpaper">{{cite journal | title = What Nature Allows the Jealous Laws Forbid: The Cases of Myrrha and Ennis del Mar | journal = Journal of Curriculum Theorizing | year = 2006 | first = Mary Aswell | last = Doll | volume = 21 | issue = 3 | pages = 39–45}}</ref><ref name="Ovid9">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=9}}</ref> The ''Metamorphoses'' show that Ovid was more interested in questioning how laws interfered with people's lives than writing epic tales like [[Virgil]]'s ''[[Aeneid]]'' or [[Homer]]'s ''[[Odyssey]]''.<ref name="Dollpaper" /> The ''Metamorphoses'' is not narrated by Ovid,{{efn|Ovid spoke in his own person in his previous works where he was reputed as a witty and cynical man. ''Metamorphoses'' is a purely narrative poem and Ovid leaves his cynicism behind to reveal a sympathetic insight in human emotions.<ref name="Ovid15">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=15}}</ref>}} but rather by the characters in the stories.<ref name="Dollpaper" /> The myth of Myrrha and Cinyras is sung by [[Orpheus]] in the tenth book of ''Metamorphoses'' after he has told the myth of [[Pygmalion (mythology)|Pygmalion]]{{efn|According to Ovid Pygmalion was Myrrha's great-grandfather: Pygmalion's daughter, [[Paphos#Founding myth|Paphos]], was the mother of Cinyras, who was Myrrha's father.<ref name="Ovid232paphos">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=232}} (Book X, 296-298)</ref>}} and before he turns to the tale of Venus and Adonis.<ref name="Ovid231-245">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|pp=231–245}} (Book X, 243-739)</ref> As the myth of Myrrha is also the longest tale sung by Orpheus (205 lines) and the only story that corresponds to his announced theme of girls punished for forbidden desire, it is considered the centerpiece of the song.<ref name="Ovid373">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|2003|p=373}}</ref> Ovid opens the myth with a warning to the audience that this is a myth of great horror, especially to fathers and daughters:

<blockquote>
The story I am going to tell is a horrible one: I beg that daughters and fathers should hold themselves aloof, while I sing, or if they find my songs enchanting, let them refuse to believe this part of my tale, and suppose that it never happened: or else, if they believe that it did happen, they must believe also in the punishment that followed.<ref name="Ovid233-2">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=233}} (Book X, 300-303)</ref>
</blockquote>

According to [[Ovid]], Myrrha was the daughter of King [[Cinyras]] and Queen Cenchreis of Cyprus. Ovid says that [[Cupid]] was not to blame for Myrrha's incestuous love for her father, Cinyras; he comments that hating one's father is a crime, but that Myrrha's love was a greater crime,<ref name="Ovid233">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=233}} (Book X, 311-315)</ref> and blames it instead on the [[Furies]].<ref name="Ovid233-238">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|pp=233–238}} (Book X, 298-513)</ref>

Over several verses, Ovid depicts the psychic struggle Myrrha faces between her sexual desire for her father and the social shame she would face for acting on it.<ref name="Ovid233-238" /> Sleepless, and losing all hope, she attempts [[suicide]]; however, she is discovered by her nurse, in whom she confides. The nurse tries to make Myrrha suppress the infatuation, but later agrees to help Myrrha into her father's bed if she promises that she will not try to kill herself again.<ref name="Ovid233-238" />

[[File:Myrrha's flight.jpg|left|240px|thumb|Myrrha's flight from her father]]

During [[Cerealia]] the worshipping women, including Queen Cenchreis, Myrrha's mother, were not to be touched by men for nine nights. Myrrha's nurse told King Cinyras of a girl deeply in love with him, giving a false name. The affair lasted several nights in complete darkness to conceal Myrrha's identity,{{efn|It is not known exactly how many nights the affair lasted, but a source suggests only three nights.<ref name="Dollpaper" />}} until Cinyras wanted to know the identity of his paramour. Upon bringing in a lamp, and seeing his daughter, the king attempted to kill her on the spot, but Myrrha escaped.<ref name="Ovid233-238" />

Thereafter Myrrha walked in exile for nine months, past the palms of [[Arabia]] and the fields of [[Panchaea]], until she reached [[Sabaeans|Sabaea]].{{efn|Modern day [[Yemen]].<ref name="Sabaea">{{cite encyclopedia | last = Stokes | first = Jamie | encyclopedia = Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East | title = Yemenis: nationality (people of Yemen) | year = 2009 | publisher = Infobase Publishing | volume = 1 | page = 745}}</ref>}} Afraid of death and tired of life, and pregnant as well, she begged the gods for a solution, and was transformed into the myrrh tree, with the sap thereof representing her tears. Later, [[Lucina (goddess)|Lucina]] freed the newborn Adonis from the tree.<ref name="Ovid233-238" />
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===Other versions===
The myth of Myrrha has been chronicled in several other works than Ovid's ''Metamorphoses''. Among the scholars who recounted it are Apollodorus, [[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], and [[Antoninus Liberalis]]. All three versions differ.

In his ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'', written around the 1st century B.C., Apollodorus{{efn|Following customary usage, the author of ''Biblioteca'' is referred to as Apollodorus, but see discussion of historicity of the author: [[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)#Pseudo-Apollodorus|pseudo-Apollodorus]].}} tells of three possible parentages for Adonis. In the first he states that Cinyras arrived in Cyprus with a few followers and founded [[Paphos]], and that he married [[Galatea (mythology)|Metharme]], eventually becoming king of Cyprus through her family. Cinyras had five children by Metharme: the two boys, Oxyporos and Adonis, and three daughters, Orsedice, Laogore, and Braisia. The daughters at some point became victims of Aphrodite's wrath and had intercourse with foreigners,{{efn|This is considered a possible reference to temple prostitution connected with the [[Cult (religious practice)|cult]] of Aphrodite or [[Astarte]]. It is unknown what caused Aphrodite's anger, but it could be neglect of her cult as Cinyras was associated with the cult of the [[Paphos|Paphian]] Aphrodite in Cyprus.<ref name="Apollodorus239">{{Harvnb|Apollodorus|1998|p=239}}</ref>}} ultimately dying in Egypt.<ref name="Apollodorus131a">{{Harvnb|Apollodorus|1998|p=131}} (Book III, 14.3)</ref>

For the second possible parentage of Adonis, Apollodorus quotes [[Hesiod]], who postulates that Adonis could be the child of [[Phoenix (son of Agenor)|Phoenix]] and [[Alphesiboea]]. He elaborates no further on this statement.<ref name="Apollodorus131">{{Harvnb|Apollodorus|1998|p=131}} (Book III, 14.4)</ref>

[[File:Picart - Birth Adonis.jpg|350px|thumb|[[Bernard Picart]] – ''The Birth of Adonis'']]

For the third option, he quotes [[Panyassis|Panyasis]], who states that King Theias of Assyria had a daughter called Smyrna. Smyrna failed to honor Aphrodite, incurring the wrath of the goddess, by whom was made to fall in love with her father; and with the aid of her nurse she deceived him for twelve nights until her identity was discovered. Smyrna fled, but her father later caught up with her. Smyrna then prayed that the gods would make her invisible, prompting them to turn her into a tree, which was named the Smyrna. Ten months later the tree cracked and Adonis was born from it.<ref name="Apollodorus131" />

In his ''Fabulae'', written around 1 A.D., Hyginus states that King Cinyras of Assyria had a daughter by his wife, Cenchreis. The daughter was named Smyrna and the mother boasted that her child excelled even Venus in beauty. Angered, Venus punished the mother by cursing Smyrna to fall in love with her father. After the nurse had prevented Smyrna from committing suicide, she helped her engage her father in sexual intercourse. When Smyrna became pregnant, she hid in the woods from shame. Venus pitied the girl's fate, changing her into a myrrh tree, from which was born Adonis.<ref name="Hyginus61">{{Harvnb|Hyginus|1960|p=61 (No. LVIII in ''Myths'')}}</ref>

In the ''Metamorphoses'' by Antoninus Liberalis, written somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd century A.D.,<ref name="Antoninus2">{{Harvnb|Liberalis|1992|p=2}}</ref>{{efn|Antoninus Liberalis' ''Metamorphoses'' have parallels to the ''Metamorphoses'' of Ovid, due to their using the same source for their individual works: the ''[[Heteroioumena]]'' by [[Nicander]] (2nd century B.C.)<ref name="Antoninus2" />}} the myth is set in Phoenicia, near Mount Lebanon. Here King Thias, son of Belus and [[Orithyia (mythology)|Orithyia]],{{efn|Bēlos was a Greek name for Ba'al. [[Orithyia]] is often associated with the daughter of an Athenian king who was taken away by [[Anemoi#Boreas|Boreas]], the north wind.<ref name="Antoninus202">{{Harvnb|Liberalis|1992|p=202}}</ref> In Liberalis' ''Metamorphoses'' she is a [[nymph]], though.<ref name="Antoninus93">{{Harvnb|Liberalis|1992|p=93}} (No. XXXIV)</ref>}} had a daughter named Smyrna. Being of great beauty, she was sought by men from far and wide. She had devised many tricks in order to delay her parents and defer the day they would choose a husband for her. Smyrna had been driven mad{{efn|Antoninus Liberalis uses the verb ''ekmainō'', which is used when describing the madness of erotic passion. He uses it when describing [[Byblis]]' love as well, and [[Alcaeus of Mytilene|Alcaeus]] uses it when describing the relationship between [[Paris (mythology)|Paris]] and [[Paris (mythology)|Helen]].<ref name="Antoninus202" />}} by desire for her father and did not want anybody else. At first she hid her desires, eventually telling her nurse, [[Hippolyte (mythology)|Hippolyte]],{{efn|[[Hippolyta|Hippolyte]] is also the name of the legendary queen of the [[Amazons]], but there is no evidence that this Hippolyte is related in any way.<ref name="Antoninus202" />}} the secret of her true feelings. Hippolyte told the king that a girl of exalted parentage wanted to lie with him, but in secret. The affair lasted for an extended period of time, and Smyrna became pregnant. At this point, Thias desired to know who she was so he hid a light, illuminating the room and discovering Smyrna's identity when she entered. In shock, Smyrna gave birth prematurely to her child. She then raised her hands and said a prayer, which was heard by Zeus who took pity on her and turned her into a tree. Thias killed himself,{{efn|This fate of Myrrha's father is also accounted for by Hyginus in his ''Fabulae'', though not in the same story as the rest of the myth.<ref name="Hyginus162">{{Harvnb|Hyginus|1960|p=162}} (No. CCXLII in ''Myths'')</ref>}} and it was on the wish of Zeus that the child was brought up and named Adonis.<ref name="Antoninus93" />

In a rare version, Myrrha's curse was inflicted on her by [[Helios]], the sun god, over some unclear insult,<ref>[[Maurus Servius Honoratus|Servius]] ''Commentary on Virgil's Eclogues'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Serv.+Ecl.+10.18&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2007.01.0091 10.18]</ref> which might reflect the role the Sun has in the myrrh's production, but nevertheless this version was far from being a popular one.<ref>{{cite book | title = Metamorphosis in Greek Myths | location = Oxford, New York, Toronto | first = Paul M. C. | last = Forbes Irving | publisher = [[Oxford University Press]], [[Clarendon Press]] | page = 275 | date = 1990 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=URvXAAAAMAAJ | isbn = 0-19-814730-9}}</ref>

==Interpretation==
The myth of Myrrha has been interpreted in various ways. The transformation of Myrrha in Ovid's version has been interpreted as a punishment for her breaking the social rules through her incestuous relationship with her father. Like [[Byblis]] who fell in love with her brother, Myrrha is transformed and rendered voiceless making her unable to break the taboo of incest.<ref name="Newlands167">{{Harvnb|Newlands|1995|p=167}}</ref>

Myrrha has also been thematically linked to the story of [[Lot's daughters]]. They live with their father in an isolated cave and because their mother is dead they decide to befuddle Lot's mind with wine and seduce him in order to keep the family alive through him.<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%2019:31-36&version=ESV Genesis 19:31-36]</ref><ref name="Miller216">{{Harvnb|Miller|Tougaw|2002|p=216}}</ref> Nancy Miller comments on the two myths:
<blockquote>
[Lot's daughters'] incest is sanctioned by reproductive necessity; because it lacks consequences, this story is not a socially recognized narrative paradigm for incest. [...] In the cases of both Lot's daughters and Myrrha, the daughter's seduction of the father has to be covert. While other incest configurations - mother-son, sibling - permit consensual agency, father-daughter incest does not; when the daughter displays transgressive sexual desire, the prohibitive father appears.<ref name="Miller216"/>
</blockquote>

Myrrha has been interpreted as developing from a girl into a woman in the course of the story: in the beginning she is a virgin refusing her suitors, in that way denying the part of herself that is normally dedicated to Aphrodite. The goddess then strikes her with desire to make love with her father and Myrrha is then made into a woman in the grip of an uncontrollable lust. The marriage between her father and mother is then set as an obstacle for her love along with incest being forbidden by the laws, profane as well as divine. The way the daughter seduces her father illustrates the most extreme version a seduction can take: the union between two persons who by social norms and laws are strictly held apart.<ref name="Detienne63-64">{{Harvnb|Detienne|1994|pp=63–64}}</ref>

James Richard Ellis has argued that the incest taboo is fundamental to a civilized society. Building on [[Sigmund Freud]]'s theories and psychoanalysis this is shown in Ovid's version of the myth of Myrrha. When the girl has been gripped by desire, she laments her humanity, for if she and her father were animals, there would be no bar to their union.<ref name="Ellis191">{{Harvnb|Ellis|2003|p=191}}</ref>

That Myrrha is transformed into a myrrh tree has also been interpreted to have influenced the character of Adonis. Being the child of both a woman and a tree he is a split person. In [[Ancient Greece]] the word Adonis could mean both "perfume" and "lover"{{efn|E.g. from a love letter written by a courtesan to her lover: "My perfume, my tender Adonis"<ref>From the ''[[Palatine Anthology]]'' as cited in {{Harvnb|Detienne|1994|pp=63}}</ref>}} and likewise Adonis is both the perfume made from the aromatic drops of myrrh as well as the human lover who seduces two goddesses.<ref name="Detienne63-64" />

In her essay "What Nature Allows the Jealous Laws Forbid" literary critic Mary Aswell Doll compares the love between the two male protagonists of [[Annie Proulx]]' book ''[[Brokeback Mountain (short story)|Brokeback Mountain]]'' (1997) with the love Myrrha has for her father in Ovid's ''Metamorphoses''. Doll suggests that both Ovid's and Proulx' main concerns are civilization and its discontents and that their use of images of nature uncovers similar understandings of what is "natural" when it comes to who and how one should love. On the subject of Ovid’s writing about love Doll states:

<blockquote>
In Ovid’s work no love is "taboo" unless it arises out of a need for power and control. A widespread instance for the latter during the [[Roman Empire]] was the practice by the elite to take nubile young girls as lovers or mistresses, girls who could be as young as daughters. Such a practice was considered normal, natural.<ref name="Dollpaper" />
</blockquote>

Cinyras' relationship with a girl on his daughter's age was therefore not unnatural, but Myrrha's being in love with her own father was. Doll elaborates further on this stating that Myrrha's lamenting that animals can mate father and daughter without problems is a way for Ovid to express a paradox: in nature a father-daughter relationship is not unnatural, but it is in human society. On this Doll concludes that "Nature follows no laws. There is no such thing as "natural law"".<ref name="Dollpaper" /> Still, Ovid distances himself in three steps from the horrifying story:

First he does not tell the story himself, but has one of his in-story characters, Orpheus, sing it;<ref name="Ovid228-245">{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|pp=228–245}} (Book X, 143-739)</ref> second, Ovid tells his audience not even to believe the story (cf. quote in "Ovid's version");<ref name="Ovid233-2" /> third, he has Orpheus congratulate Rome, Ovid's home town, for its being far away from the land where this story took place (Cyprus).<ref>{{Harvnb|Ovidius Naso|1971|p=233}} (Book X, 304-307)</ref> By distancing himself, Doll writes, Ovid lures his audience to keep listening. First then does Ovid begin telling the story describing Myrrha, her father and their relationship, which Doll compares to the mating of [[Cupid and Psyche]]:{{efn|Doll remarks that the union of Cupid and Psyche is a metaphor for the union of love and soul.<ref name="Dollpaper" />}} here the lovemaking occurs in complete darkness and only the initiator ([[Cupid]]) knows the identity of the other as well. Myrrha's metamorphosing into a tree is read by Doll as a metaphor where the tree incarnates the secret. As a side effect, Doll notes, the metamorphosis also alters the idea of incest into something natural for the imagination to think about. Commenting on a Freudian analysis of the myth stating that Ovid "disconcertingly suggests that [father-lust] might be an unspoken universal of human experience".<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Ovidius Naso | first1 = Publius | author-link1 = Ovid | title = The Metamorphoses: Ovid |editor1= F. J. Miller | publisher = Barnes & Noble Classics | year = 2005 | location = New York | page = xxx | isbn = 1-4366-6586-8}} as cited in {{cite journal | title = What Nature Allows the Jealous Laws Forbid: The Cases of Myrrha and Ennis del Mar | journal = Journal of Curriculum Theorizing | year = 2006 | first = Mary Aswell | last = Doll | volume = 21 | issue = 3 | pages = 39–45}}</ref> Doll notes that Ovid's stories work like metaphors: they are meant to give insight into the human psyche. Doll states that the moments when people experience moments like those of father-lust are repressed and unconscious, which means that they are a natural part of growing and that most grow out of it sometime. She concludes about Ovid and his version of Myrrha that: "What is perverted, for Ovid, is the use of sex as a power tool and the blind acceptance of sexual male power as a cultural norm."<ref name="Dollpaper" />

In 2008 the newspaper ''[[The Guardian]]'' named Myrrha's relationship with her father as depicted in ''Metamorphoses'' by Ovid as one of the top ten stories of incestuous love ever. It complimented the myth for being more disturbing than any of the other incestuous relationships depicted in the ''Metamorphoses''.<ref name="The Guardian 2008">{{cite news | first = John | last = Mullan | title = Ten of the best incestuous relationships | date = 2008-04-10 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/oct/04/13?INTCMP=SRCH | work = The Guardian | access-date = 2011-01-29}}</ref>

Particularly in light of the themes of secrecy in the taboo, and the patriarchal nature of Ovid's society, the myth may also serve to reverse the narrative on cases where the father manipulates and sexually abuses his own daughters and no actual seduction of the father by the daughter occurs, except in his own mind. This would be similar to how [[The Freudian Coverup]] theory functions socially.

==Cultural impact==

===Literature===

One of the earliest recordings of a play inspired by the myth of Myrrha is in the ''[[Antiquities of the Jews]]'', written in 93 A.D. by the [[Roman Empire|Roman]]-[[Jews|Jewish]] historian [[Josephus|Flavius Josephus]].<ref name="Josephus669">{{Harvnb|Josephus|1835|p=23}}</ref> A tragedy entitled ''Cinyras'' is mentioned, wherein the main character, Cinyras, is to be slain along with his daughter Myrrha, and "a great deal of fictitious blood was shed".<ref name="Josephus384">{{Harvnb|Josephus|1835|p=384}} (Book XIX, chapter 1.13)</ref> No further details are given about the plot of this play.<ref name="Josephus384"/>

[[File:Inferno Canto 30 verses 38-39.jpg|left|240px|thumb|Myrrha in Hell ([[Gustave Doré]], illustration for Dante's ''Divine Comedy'')]]

Myrrha appears in the ''[[Divine Comedy]]'' poem ''[[Inferno (Dante)|Inferno]]'' by [[Dante Alighieri]], where Dante sees her soul being punished in the [[Malebolge|eighth circle of Hell]], in the tenth bolgia (ditch). Here she and other falsifiers such as the [[Alchemy|alchemists]] and the counterfeiters suffer dreadful diseases, Myrrha's being madness.<ref name="Alighieri205-210">{{Harvnb|Alighieri|2003|pp=205–210}} (canto XXX, verses 34-48)</ref><ref name="Glenn58-59">{{Harvnb|Glenn|2008|pp=58–59}}</ref> Myrrha's suffering in the tenth bolgia indicates her most serious sin was not incest{{efn|Incest would likely have been categorized as a "carnal sin" by Dante which would have earned her a place in Hell's 2nd circle.<ref name="Alighieri01">{{Harvnb|Alighieri|2003|p=v}}</ref>}} but deceit.<ref name="Alighieri0">{{Harvnb|Alighieri|2003|p=vii}}</ref> Diana Glenn interprets the symbolism in Myrrha's [[contrapasso]] as being that her sin is so unnatural and unlawful that she is forced to abandon human society and simultaneously she loses her identity. Her madness in Hell prevents even basic communication which attests to her being contemptuous of the social order in life.<ref name="Glenn58-59"/>

Dante had already shown his familiarity with the myth of Myrrha in a prior letter to [[Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Henry VII]], which he wrote on 17 April 1311.<ref name="Alighieri69">{{Harvnb|Alighieri|2007|p=69}}</ref> Here he compares [[Florence]] with "Myrrha, wicked and ungodly, yearning for the embrace of her father, Cinyras";<ref name="Alighieri78-79">{{Harvnb|Alighieri|2007|pp=78–79}}</ref> a metaphor, Claire Honess interprets as referring to the way Florence tries to "seduce" [[Pope Clement V]] away from Henry VII. It is incestuous because the [[Pope]] is the father of all and it is also implied that the city in that way rejects her true husband, the Emperor.<ref name="Alighieri78-79"/>

In the poem ''[[Venus and Adonis (Shakespeare poem)|Venus and Adonis]]'', written by [[William Shakespeare]] in 1593 [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]] refers to Adonis' mother. In the 34th stanza Venus is lamenting because Adonis is ignoring her approaches and in her heart-ache she says "O, had thy mother borne so hard a mind, She had not brought forth thee, but died unkind."<ref name="Shakespeare732">{{Harvnb|Shakespeare|1932|p=732}} (stanza 34)</ref> Shakespeare makes a subtle reference to Myrrha later when Venus picks a flower: "She crops the stalk, and in the breach appears, Green dropping sap, which she compares to tears."<ref name="Shakespeare755">{{Harvnb|Shakespeare|1932|p=755}} (stanza 196)</ref> It has been suggested that these plant juices being compared to tears are a parallel to Myrrha's tears being the drops of myrrh exuding from the myrrh tree.<ref name="Bate58">{{Harvnb|Bate|1994|p=58}}</ref>

In another work of Shakespeare, ''[[Othello]]'' (1603), it has been suggested that he has made another reference. In act 5, scene 2 the main character Othello compares himself to a myrrh tree with its constant stream of tears (Myrrha's tears).{{efn|Othello: "...of one whose subdued eyes,<br /> Albeit unused to the melting mood,<br /> Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees<br /> Their medicinal gum".<ref>Othello, V, II, 357-360 as cited in {{Harvnb|Bate|1994|p=187}}</ref>}} The reference is justified in the way that it draws inspiration from Book X of Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'', just like his previously written poem, ''Venus and Adonis'', did.<ref name="Bate187">{{Harvnb|Bate|1994|p=187}}</ref>

The tragedy ''Mirra'' by [[Vittorio Alfieri]] (written in 1786) is inspired by the story of Myrrha. In the play, Mirra falls in love with her father, Cinyras. Mirra is to be married to Prince Pyrrhus, but decides against it, and leaves him at the altar. In the ending, Mirra has a mental breakdown in front of her father who is infuriated because the prince has killed himself. Owning that she loves Cinyras, Mirra grabs his sword, while he recoils in horror, and kills herself.<ref name="Eggenberger38">{{Harvnb|Eggenberger|1972|p=38}}</ref>

The novella ''[[Mathilda (novella)|Mathilda]]'', written by [[Mary Shelley]] in 1820, contains similarities to the myth and mentions Myrrha. Mathilda is left by her father as a baby after her birth causes the death of her mother, and she does not meet her father until he returns sixteen years later. Then he tells her that he is in love with her, and, when she refuses him, he commits suicide.<ref name="Mathilda summary">{{cite web | url = http://www.enotes.com/nineteenth-century-criticism/mathilda-mary-wollstonecraft-shelley | title = Mathilda, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - Introduction | access-date = 2011-01-26 | last = Whitaker | first = Jessica Menzo Russel | year = 2002 | work = eNotes | publisher = Gale Cengage}}</ref> In chapter 4, Mathilda makes a direct allusion: "I chanced to say that I thought ''Myrrha'' the best of Alfieri's tragedies."<ref name="Shelley128">Shelley, Mary. ''Mathilda'' in ''The Mary Shelley Reader''. Oxford University Press, 1990 cited in {{Harvnb|Shelley|1997|p=128}}</ref> Audra Dibert Himes, in an essay entitled "Knew shame, and knew desire", notes a more subtle reference to Myrrha: Mathilda spends the last night before her father’s arrival in the woods, but as she returns home the next morning the trees seemingly attempt to encompass her. Himes suggests that the trees can be seen as a parallel to Ovid’s metamorphosed Myrrha.<ref name="Shelley123">{{Harvnb|Shelley|1997|p=123}}</ref>

The tragedy ''Sardanapalus'' by [[George Gordon Byron]] published in 1821 and produced in 1834 is set in Assyria, 640 B.C., under King [[Sardanapalus]]. The play deals with the revolt against the extravagant king and his relationship to his favourite slave Myrrha. Myrrha made Sardanapalus appear at the head of his armies, but after winning three successive battles in this way he was eventually defeated. A beaten man, Myrrha persuaded Sardanapalus to place himself on a funeral pyre which she would ignite and subsequently leap onto - burning them both alive.<ref name='Cambridge Sardanapalus'>{{Harvnb|Ousby|1993|p=827}}</ref><ref name='Britannica vol 10'>{{cite encyclopedia | encyclopedia = The New Encyclopædia Britannica: Micropædia | title = Sardanapalus | edition = 15th | year = 2003 | publisher = Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. | volume = 10 | location = U.S.A. | page = 450}}</ref><ref name="Hochman 1984">{{Harvnb|Hochman|1984|p=38}}</ref><ref name='Byron'>{{Harvnb|Byron|1823|p=3}}</ref> The play has been interpreted as an [[autobiography]], with Sardanapalus as Byron's alter ego, Zarina as Byron's wife [[Anne Isabella Byron, Baroness Byron|Anne Isabella]], and Myrrha as his mistress [[Teresa, Contessa Guiccioli|Teresa]]. At a more abstract level Myrrha is the desire for freedom driving those who feel trapped or bound, as well as being the incarnation of Byron's dream of romantic love.<ref name="McGann142-150">{{Harvnb|McGann|2002|pp=142–150}}</ref> Byron knew the story of the mythical Myrrha, if not directly through Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'', then at least through Alfieri's ''Mirra'', which he was familiar with. In her essay "A Problem Few Dare Imitate", Susan J. Wolfson phrases and interprets the relation of the play ''Sardanapalus'' and the myth of Myrrha:<ref name="Gleckner223-224">{{Harvnb|Gleckner|1997|pp=223–224}}</ref>
<blockquote>
Although [Byron's] own play evades the full import of this complicated association, Myrrha's name means that it [the name's referring to incest, red.] cannot be escaped entirely - especially since Ovid's story of Myrrha's incest poses a potential reciprocal to the nightmare Byron invents for Sardanapalus, of sympathy with the son who is the object of his mother's 'incest'.<ref name="Gleckner224">{{Harvnb|Gleckner|1997|p=224}}</ref>
</blockquote>

In 1997 the myth of Myrrha and Cinyras was one of 24 tales from Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' that were retold by English poet [[Ted Hughes]] in his poetical work ''[[Tales from Ovid]]''. The work was praised for not directly translating, but instead retelling the story in a language which was as fresh and new for the audience today as Ovid's texts were to his contemporary audience. Hughes was also complimented on his achievements in using humour or horror when describing Myrrha or a flood, respectively.<ref name="The Independent 1997">{{cite news | first = Josephine | last = Balmer | author-link = Josephine Balmer | title = What's the Latin for 'the Brookside vice'? | date = 1997-05-04 | url = https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/whats-the-latin-forthe-brookside-vice-1259779.html | work = The Independent | access-date = 2011-01-29}}</ref> The work received critical acclaim winning the [[Whitbread Book of the Year|Whitbread Book Of The Year Award]] 1997<ref name="Whitbread">{{cite web | url = http://www.costabookawards.com/downloads/PastWinners.pdf | title = Past Winners | access-date = 2011-01-29 | work = Costa Book Awards | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091229131124/http://www.costabookawards.com/downloads/PastWinners.pdf | archive-date = 2009-12-29 }}</ref> and being adapted to the stage in 1999, starring Sirine Saba as Myrrha.<ref name="The Independent 1999">{{cite news | title = THE INFORMATION on; 'Tales from Ovid' | date = 1999-04-23 | url = https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-information-on--tales-from-ovid-1089019.html | work = The Independent | access-date = 2011-01-29}}</ref>

In 1997 American poet [[Frank Bidart]] wrote ''Desire'', which was another retelling of the myth of Myrrha as it was presented in the ''Metamorphoses'' by Ovid. The case of Myrrha, critic Langdon Hammer notes, is the worst possible made against desire, because the story of Myrrha shows how sex can lead people to destroy others as well as themselves. He comments that "the "precious bitter resin" into which Myrrha's tears are changed tastes bitter ''and'' sweet, like ''Desire'' as a whole".<ref name='Nation 1997'>{{cite news | first = Langdon | last = Hammer | title = Poetry and Embodiment | date = 1997-11-24 | publisher = Katrina vanden Heuvel | work = The Nation | pages = 32–34 }}</ref> He further writes: "The inescapability of desire makes Bidart's long story of submission to it a kind of affirmation. Rather than aberrant, the Ovidian characters come to feel exemplary".<ref name="Nation 1997"/>

Myrrha - or Smyrna - is also mentioned in André Aciman's 2019 novel Find Me.

====John Dryden's translation====
[[File:John Dryden portrait.jpg|300px|thumb|The English poet [[John Dryden]] translated the myth of Myrrha for political purposes.]]

In 1700 English poet [[John Dryden]] published his translations of myths by Ovid, [[Homer]], and [[Giovanni Boccaccio|Boccaccio]] in the volume ''Fables, Ancient and Modern''. Literary critic Anthony W. Lee notes in his essay "Dryden's ''Cinyras and Myrrha''" that this translation, along with several others, can be interpreted as a subtle comment on the political scene of the late seventeenth-century England.<ref name="Drydenpaper">{{cite journal | title = Dryden's Cinyras and Myrrha | journal = The Explicator | year = 2004 | first = Anthony W. | last = Lee | volume = 62 | issue = 3 | pages = 141–144 | doi = 10.1080/00144940409597201 | s2cid = 161754795 }}</ref>

The translation of the myth of Myrrha as it appeared in Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' is suggested as being a critique of the political settlement that followed the [[Glorious Revolution]]. The wife of the leader of this revolution, [[William III of England|William of Orange]], was [[Mary II of England|Mary]], daughter of [[James II of England|James II]]. Mary and William were crowned king and queen of England in 1689, and because Dryden was deeply sympathetic to James he lost his public offices and fell into political disfavor under the new reign. Dryden turned to translation and infused these translations with political satire in response - the myth of Myrrha being one of these translations.<ref name="Drydenpaper" />

In the opening lines of the poem Dryden describes King Cinyras just as Ovid did as a man who had been happier if he had not become a father. Lee suggests that this is a direct parallel to James who could have been counted as happier if he had not had his daughter, Mary, who betrayed him and usurped his monarchical position. When describing the act of incest Dryden uses a monster metaphor. Those lines are suggested as aimed at William III who invaded England from the Netherlands and whose presence Dryden describes as a curse or a punishment, according to Lee. A little further on the [[Convention Parliament (1689)|Convention Parliament]] is indicted. Lee suggests that Dryden critiques the intrusiveness of the Convention Parliament, because it acted without constituted legal authority. Finally the daughter, Mary as Myrrha,{{efn|Lee notes the phonetic similarity of the names. If you switch the vowels "Myrrha" becomes "Mary".<ref name="Drydenpaper" />}} is described as an impious outcast from civilization, whose greatest sin was her disrupting the natural line of succession thereby breaking both natural as well as divine statutes which resulted in fundamental social confusion. When Myrrha craves and achieves her father's (Cinyras') bed, Lee sees a parallel to Mary's ascending James' throne: both daughters incestuously occupied the place which belonged to their fathers.<ref name="Drydenpaper" />

Reading the translation of the myth of Myrrha by Dryden as a comment on the political scene, states Lee, is partly justified by the characterization done by the historian [[Julian Hoppit]] on the events of the revolution of 1688:<ref name="Drydenpaper" />

<blockquote>
To most a monarch was God's earthly representative, chosen by Him for the benefit of His people. For men to meddle in that choice was to tamper with the divine order, the inevitable price of which was chaos.<ref name="Hoppit21-22">{{Harvnb|Hoppit|2002|pp=21–22}}</ref>
</blockquote>

===Music===
{{Listen|filename=Myrrha Gavotte 3.ogg|title=Myrrha Gavotte|description=A rendition of the piano reduction of Sousa's 1876 "Myrrha Gavotte".}}
In music, Myrrha was the subject of an 1876 band piece by [[John Philip Sousa]], ''Myrrha Gavotte''<ref name="Bierley236">{{Harvnb|Bierley|2001|p=236}}</ref> and in 1901, [[Maurice Ravel]] and [[André Caplet]] each wrote cantatas titled ''Myrrha''.<ref name="Ravel">{{cite web | url = http://www.allmusic.com/artist/maurice-ravel-q7873/works/all | title = Maurice Ravel | access-date = 2011-01-26 | work = Allmusic}}</ref><ref name="Caplet">{{cite web | url = http://www.allmusic.com/artist/andr-caplet-q1091/works/all | title = André Caplet | access-date = 2011-01-26 | work = Allmusic}}</ref> Caplet finished first over Ravel who was third in the [[Prix de Rome]] competition. The competition required that the candidates jumped through a series of academic hoops before entering the final where they were to compose a cantata on a prescribed text.<ref name='Ravel criticism'>{{cite news | first = Andrew | last = Clements | title = Classical CD releases | date = 2001-03-23 | publisher = Guardian News and Media | url = https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2001/mar/23/shopping1?INTCMP=SRCH | work = [[The Guardian]] | access-date = 2011-03-15}}</ref> Though it was not the best musical piece, the jury praised Ravel's work for its "melodic charm" and "sincerity of dramatic sentiment".<ref name="Orenstein35-36">{{Harvnb|Orenstein|1991|pp=35–36}}</ref> Musical critic Andrew Clements writing for ''The Guardian'' commented on Ravel's failures at winning the competition: "Ravel's repeated failure to win the Prix de Rome, the most coveted prize for young composers in France at the turn of the 20th century, has become part of musical folklore."<ref name="Ravel criticism"/>

Italian composer [[Domenico Alaleona]]'s only opera, premiering in 1920, was entitled ''Mirra''. The libretto drew on the legend of Myrrha while the music was inspired by [[Claude Debussy]]'s ''[[Pelléas et Mélisande (opera)|Pelléas et Mélisande]]'' (1902) as well as [[Richard Strauss]]' ''[[Elektra (opera)|Elektra]]'' (1909). Suffering from being monotonic, the final showdown between father and daughter, the critics commented, was the only part really making an impact.<ref name="The Guardian 2005">{{cite news | first = Tim | last = Ashley | title = Alaleona: Mirra: Mazzola-Gavezzeni/ Gertseva/ Malagnini/ Ferrari/ Chorus and Orchestra of Radio France/ Valcuh | date = 2005-04-08 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/apr/08/classicalmusicandopera.shopping?INTCMP=SRCH | work = The Guardian | access-date = 2011-01-30}}</ref> ''Mirra'' remains Alaleona's most ambitious composition and though the music tended to be "eclectic and uneven", it showed "technical enterprise".<ref name="Oxfordmusiconlinealaleona">{{cite encyclopedia | last = C.G. Waterhouse | first = John | encyclopedia = Grove Music Online | title = Alaleona, Domenico | publisher = Oxford University Press}}</ref>

More recently, Kristen Kuster created a choral orchestration, ''Myrrha'', written in 2004 and first performed at [[Carnegie Hall]] in 2006. Kuster stated that the idea for ''Myrrha'' came when she was asked by the [[American Composers Orchestra]] to write a love-and-erotica themed concert. The concert was inspired by the myth of Myrrha in Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' and includes excerpts from the volume that "move in and out of the music as though in a dream, or perhaps Myrrha’s memory of the events that shaped her fate," as described by Kuster.<ref name="Kuster ACO">{{cite web | url = http://www.americancomposers.org/kuster_interview.htm | title = Myrrha in the Making | access-date = 2011-01-26 | work = [[American Composers Orchestra]] | quote = move in and out of the music as though in a dream, or perhaps Myrrha’s memory of the events that shaped her fate}}</ref><ref name="Kuster NYT">{{cite news | first = Allan | last = Kozinn | title = New Music From American Composers Orchestra at Carnegie Hall | date = 2006-05-05 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/05/arts/music/05comp.html?_r=1&sq=myrrha&st=cse&adxnnl=1&scp=8&adxnnlx=1296069217-wG1nDOmuInI1KJtQ08Q4GA | work = The New York Times | access-date = 2011-01-26}}</ref>

=== Art ===

The ''Metamorphoses'' of Ovid has been illustrated by several artists through time. In 1563 in [[Frankfurt]], a [[German language|German]] bilingual translation by Johann Posthius was published, featuring the woodcuts of renowned German engraver [[Virgil Solis]]. The illustration of Myrrha depicts Myrrha's deceiving her father as well as her fleeing from him.<ref name='Solis'>{{cite web | url = http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/latin/ovid/about.html | title = Ovid Illustrated: The Reception of Ovid's Metamorphoses in Image and Text | access-date = 2011-02-27 | last = Kinney | first = Daniel |author2=Elizabeth Styron | publisher = University of Virginia Electronic Text Center}}</ref> In 1717 in London, a Latin-English edition of ''Metamorphoses'' was published, translated by [[Samuel Garth]] and with plates of French engraver [[Bernard Picart]]. The illustration of Myrrha was entitled ''The Birth of Adonis'' and featured Myrrha as a tree delivering Adonis while surrounded by women.<ref name='Picart picture'>{{cite web | url = http://etext.virginia.edu/latin/ovid/banier/banie098.html | title = Ovid Illustrated: The Reception of Ovid's Metamorphoses in Image and Text - Fab. X. ''Myrrha changed to a tree; the Birth of Adonis'' | access-date = 2011-03-17 | last = Kinney | first = Daniel |author2=Elizabeth Styron | publisher = University of Virginia Electronic Text Center}}</ref><ref name='Picart'>{{cite web | url = http://etext.virginia.edu/latin/ovid/banier.html | title = Ovid Illustrated: The Reception of Ovid's Metamorphoses in Image and Text - Abbé Banier's Ovid commentary Englished from Ovid's Metamorphoses (Garth tr., Amsterdam, 1732) | access-date = 2011-03-17 | last = Kinney | first = Daniel |author2=Elizabeth Styron | publisher = University of Virginia Electronic Text Center}}</ref><ref name='Garth preface'>{{cite web | url = http://etext.virginia.edu/latin/ovid/va1717/garth001.html | title = Ovid Illustrated: The Reception of Ovid's Metamorphoses in Image and Text - Preface of Garth Translation (London, 1717) and Banier-Garth (Amsterdam, 1732) | access-date = 2011-03-17 | last = Kinney | first = Daniel |author2=Elizabeth Styron | publisher = University of Virginia Electronic Text Center}}</ref> In 1857 French engraver [[Gustave Doré]] made a series of illustrations to Dante's ''Divine Comedy'', the depiction of Myrrha showing her in the eighth circle of Hell.<ref name="Alighieri205-210"/><ref name="Roosevelt212-227">{{Harvnb|Roosevelt|1885|pp=212–227}}</ref>

In 1690, Italian [[Baroque painting|Baroque]] painter [[Marcantonio Franceschini]] depicted Myrrha as a tree while delivering Adonis in ''The Birth of Adonis''. The painting was included in the art exhibition "Captured Emotions: Baroque Painting in Bologna, 1575-1725" at the [[J. Paul Getty Museum]] at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California which lasted from December 16, 2008 through May 3, 2009. Normally the painting is exhibited in the [[Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden]] (English: Dresden State Art Collections) in Germany as a part of the ''[[Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister]]'' (English: Old Masters Picture Gallery).<ref name='Artknowledge'>{{cite web | url = http://www.artknowledgenews.com/jpaulgettymuseumcapturedemotionshtml.html | title = Captured Emotions: Baroque Painting in Bologna, 1575-1725 Opens at the Getty Museum | access-date = 2011-03-15 | work = Art Knowledge News | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110427211956/http://www.artknowledgenews.com/jpaulgettymuseumcapturedemotionshtml.html | archive-date = 2011-04-27 | url-status = dead }}</ref><ref name='Getty Museum'>{{cite web | url = http://www.getty.edu/news/press/captured_emotions/captured_emotions_object_list.pdf | title = Object list: Captured Emotions: Baroque Painting in Bologna, 1575–1725 | access-date = 2011-03-15 | publisher = The [[J. Paul Getty Museum]], [[Getty Center]] and [[Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden]] | archive-date = 2010-07-13 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100713223643/https://www.getty.edu/news/press/captured_emotions/captured_emotions_object_list.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref>

In 1984, artist [[Mel Chin]] created a sculpture based on Doré's illustration of Myrrha for the ''Divine Comedy''. The sculpture was titled "''Myrrha of the Post Industrial World''" and depicted a nude woman sitting on a rectangular pedestal. It was an outdoor project in Bryant Park, and the skin of the sculpture was made of perforated steel. Inside was a visible skeleton of [[polystyrene]]. When finished, the sculpture was 29 feet tall.<ref name="Times 1984">{{cite news | first = Susan | last = Heller Anderson |author2=David Bird | title = The See-Through Woman Of Bryant Park | date = 1984-08-14 | url = https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/14/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-the-see-through-woman-of-bryant-park.html?scp=4&sq=myrrha&st=cse | work = The New York Times | access-date = 2011-01-26}}</ref>

===Science===
[[File:P1100358 Myrrha octodecimguttata.jpg|thumb|right|The [[18-spot ladybird]] is linked to Myrrha in its scientific name, ''Myrrha octodecimguttata''.]]
Several [[Metamorphosis|metamorphosing]] insects' [[binomial name|scientific names]] reference the myth. ''[[Myrrha (beetle)|Myrrha]]'' is a [[genus]] of [[ladybug]] beetles, such as the [[18-spot ladybird]] (''Myrrha octodecimguttata'').<ref>{{cite web |title=Checklist of Beetles of the British Isles |year=2008 |last1=A. G. |first1=Duff |access-date=2011-02-02 |publisher=The Coleopterist |url=http://coleopterist.org.uk/checklist2008%20A5.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110705155707/http://www.coleopterist.org.uk/checklist2008%20A5.pdf |archive-date=2011-07-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref> ''[[Libythea myrrha]]'', the club beak, is a butterfly native to India. ''[[Polyommatus myrrha]]'' is a rare species of butterfly named by [[Gottlieb August Wilhelm Herrich-Schäffer]] found on [[Mount Erciyes]] in south-eastern Turkey.<ref>{{LepIndex |id=202492 |name=Cupido myrrha}} Retrieved April 21, 2018.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Naturhistorisches Museum (Austria)|author-link1= Naturhistorisches Museum|title=Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien|trans-title=Museum of Natural History of Vienna annual|url= https://archive.org/details/annalendesnaturh20natu|publisher=Wien, Naturhistorisches Museum|volume=20|page=[https://archive.org/details/annalendesnaturh20natu/page/197 197]|year=1905|language=de|quote='Zwei ♂ dieser seltenen Art aus dem Erdschias-Gebiet' Translation:Two males of these rare species from the Erciyes region.}}</ref> ''Catocala myrrha'' is a synonym for a species of moth known as [[Catocala myrrha|married underwing]].{{efn|Scientific names may change over time as animals are reclassified and the current standard scientific name for the married underwing is Catocala nuptialias. Catocala myrrha is a scientific synonym of Catocala nuptialis.<ref name="Gall">{{cite journal |last1=Gall |first1=Lawrence F |last2=Hawks |first2=David C. |year=1990 |title=Systematics of Moths in the Genus ''Catocala'' (Lepidoptera: ''Noctuidae''). |journal=Fieldiana |issue=1414 |pages=12 |publisher=Field Museum of Natural History |url=http://libsysdigi.library.uiuc.edu/oca/Books2008-01/hoplomyzonsexpap/hoplomyzonsexpap59taph/hoplomyzonsexpap59taph_djvu.txt |access-date=2011-02-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720085231/http://libsysdigi.library.uiuc.edu/oca/Books2008-01/hoplomyzonsexpap/hoplomyzonsexpap59taph/hoplomyzonsexpap59taph_djvu.txt |archive-date=2011-07-20 |url-status=dead }}</ref>}}<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/commonnames.htm | title = Catocala: Classification and Common Names | access-date = 2011-01-30 | last = Oehlke | first = Bill | work = P. E. I. R. T. A.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Catocala-nuptialis | title = Attributes of Catocala nuptialis | access-date = 2011-01-30 | work = Butterflies and Moths of North America}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.catalogueoflife.org/annual-checklist/2010/details/species/id/1099716 | title = Catocala myrrha | access-date = 2011-01-30 | work = Catalogue of Life - 2010 Annual Checklist}}</ref> In total the United Kingdom's [[Natural History Museum, London|Natural History Museum]] lists seven [[Lepidoptera]] (moths and butterflies) with the myrrha name.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/data/lepindex/search/list/?indexed_from=1&page_no=1&page_size=30&search_type=starts&snoc=myrrha |title=LepIndex - The Global Lepidoptera Names Index for taxon myrrha|author=Natural History Museum, London|author-link=Natural History Museum, London |access-date=2018-05-15}}</ref>

Myrrh is a bitter-tasting, aromatic, yellow to reddish brown gum. It is obtained from small thorny flowering trees of the genus ''[[Commiphora]]'', which is a part of the incense-tree family ([[Burseraceae]]). There are two main varieties of myrrh: bisabol and herabol. Bisabol is produced by ''[[Commiphora erythraea|C. erythraea]]'', an Arabian species similar to the ''[[Commiphora myrrha|C. myrrha]]'', which produces the herabol myrrh. ''C. myrrha'' grows in [[Ethiopia]], Arabia, and [[Somalia]].<ref name="Britannica vol 8" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Species identity - Commiphora myrrha |access-date=2011-02-02 |publisher=International center for research in agroforestry |url=http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org/sea/products/afdbases/af/asp/SpeciesInfo.asp?SpID=17990 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930043102/http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org/sea/products/afdbases/af/asp/SpeciesInfo.asp?SpID=17990 |archive-date=2011-09-30 }}</ref>

A large asteroid, measuring {{convert|124|km|mi|0}} is named [[381 Myrrha]]. It was discovered and named on January 10, 1894 by A. Charlois at Nice. The mythical Myrrha inspired the name and her son, Adonis, is the name given to another asteroid, [[2101 Adonis]].<ref name="Lewis371">{{Harvnb|Lewis|Prinn|1984|p=371}}</ref><ref name="Schmadel372">{{Harvnb|Schmadel|2003|p=372}}</ref> Using classical names like Myrrha, [[3 Juno|Juno]], and [[4 Vesta|Vesta]] when naming minor planets was standard custom at the time when 381 Myrrha was discovered. It was the general opinion that using numbers instead might lead to unnecessary confusion.<ref name="Schmadel4-5">{{Harvnb|Schmadel|2003|pp=4–5}}</ref>
{{-}}

==See also==
{{portal|Mythology}}
* [[The Freudian Coverup]]
* [[Electra complex]]
* [[Incest in folklore]]
* [[Incest in popular culture]]
* [[List of Metamorphoses characters]]
* [[Oedipus]]
* [[Nyctaea]]
* [[Nyctimene (mythology)]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
<references/>

=== Works cited ===
{{refbegin|colwidth=30em}}
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{{refend}}

==External links==
* {{commons-inline}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110320053210/http://glynnisfawkes.com/the-story-of-myrrha/ The myth of Myrrha retold in comic, by Glynnis Fawkes]
* [https://iconographic.warburg.sas.ac.uk/category/vpc-taxonomy-000112 The Warburg Institute Iconographic Database (images of Myrrha)]
{{Metamorphoses in Greco-Roman mythology}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Metamorphoses into trees in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Deeds of Zeus]]
[[Category:Deeds of Aphrodite]]
[[Category:Mythological rapists]]
[[Category:Incestual abuse]]
[[Category:Princesses in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Metamorphoses characters]]
[[Category:Cypriot mythology]]
[[Category:Helios in mythology]]
[[Category:Asia in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Family of Adonis]]
[[Category:Mythological people involved in incest]]