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| Apples in Mythology |
| Did You Know? |
The apple appears throughout mythology as a symbol of
desire and temptation. This may have its roots in stories about Aphrodite, goddess of love and marriage,
who was presented in several occasions in art holding an apple. The myth of Atalanta
further contributes to this idea. The fleet-footed maiden, told by an oracle
that she would die if she wed, refused to marry unless the suiter could beat
her in a foot race. Hippomenes bested Atalanta with the help of Aphrodite, who
provided him with three golden apples. Stopping to collect the baubles lobbed
in her path each time she took the lead cost Atalanta her maidenhood.
The Greek goddess of discord, Eris, started the Trojan War with an apple. Miffed at having not been invited to a wedding, she tossed among the guests a golden apple inscribed "To the fairest." To put an end to the squabbling among their goddesses who each felt deserving of the apple, the mortal Paris chose Aphrodite the winner of what was probably the first beauty contest. Rejected, Hera and Athena wreaked havoc on Paris and his family, eventually leading to the Trojan War.
The apple also appears as a symbol of the sun's life-giving warmth in many cultures' legends. Apple trees were sacred to the sun god Apollo; in fact, the name Apollo comes from the same root as the modern English word apple. The Celts revered the then-unknown Britain as a happy kingdom of the sun called the Isle of Apples, or Avalon, and it was here that King Arthur supposedly went to spend eternity.
Apples, Love and Marriage
The apple also appears as a symbol of love and fertility,
even eroticism. By early Greek history, the apple figured in courtship as well
as the rites and customs of marriage. For example, the happy couple in the seventh
century B.C. might share an apple as a symbol of their marriage and hopes for
a fruitful union.
The modern tradition of tossing rice at the happy couple evolved
from an ancient practice of throwing apples at weddings – likely to the relief
of the newlyweds.
There are a number of traditions involving apple seeds as predictors
of marriage that we would declare downright silly today.
The game of apple-bobbing
began as a Celtic New Year's tradition for trying to determine one's future spouse.
Courtesy of U.S. Apple Association.