Attis

In classical mythology, a Phrygian god whose death and resurrection symbolized the end of winter and the arrival of spring; also regarded as a vegetation god. Beloved by the earth goddess Cybele, who drove him mad as punishment for his infidelity, he castrated himself and bled to death. Violets sprang from his blood, and Zeus turned him into a pine tree.

Birth In the earliest known version of the myth, the androgynous Cybele, possessing male and female characteristics, was castrated by the gods. From the severed male organs grew an almond tree by whose fruit Nana, daughter of the river god Sangarius, conceived and gave birth to Attis.

Worship At the rites in his honour, Attis was represented by a felled pine wrapped in a shroud and adorned with wreaths. Some devotees sought identification with the god by castrating themselves. His worship was rare in Greece, but in Rome, under the emperor Claudius, he was given official status and regarded as a solar deity.