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This tale from Roman mythology would have made a good Valentine’s Day post, but I forgot.

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Ariadne was the daughter of Minos, King of Crete. She was kind and beautiful, and all who met her fell under her spell.

One day, Ariadne fell in love with Theseus, the son of Aegeas, King of Athens.

They met under grave circumstances. Theseus had been brought to the court of King Minos in chains, as part of a tribute that Athens was forced to pay to Crete.

The tribute was seven men and seven women, once every seven years, to be sacrificed to the Minotaur, a terrible creature that was half man and half bull. The Minotaur was imprisoned underground in a labyrinth so artfully contrived that no one placed inside could find the way out unassisted.

Theseus took the place of one of the seven men in the tribute. He planned to enter the labyrinth prior to the sacrifice and kill the monster.

Ariadne gave Theseus a ball of string, by which he could find his way out of the labyrinth. Theseus concealed a sword beneath his tunic and entered the labyrinth. He slew the Minotaur and followed the string to freedom.

Together, Theseus and Ariadne fled from Crete to the Isle of Naxos. There, exhausted, Ariadne fell asleep.

When she did, the ungrateful Theseus sailed away and left her alone on the island. He claimed that the gods had commanded him to do so.

On awakening and finding herself deserted, Ariadne was lost in grief. The goddess Venus heard her and took pity on her. She told Ariadne that soon she would have the love she deserved — an immortal love.

As it happened, the Isle of Naxos often was visited by Bacchus, the god of wine, agriculture, and fertility. Bacchus found Ariadne at Naxos, and he consoled her, and they fell in love.

In time, they married. As a wedding gift, Bacchus gave Ariadne a golden crown, embellished with magnificent gems.

After a long and happy life, Ariadne, being a mortal woman, died.

And when she died, Bacchus took the crown and threw it into the sky. As the crown rose higher, the gems grew brighter, and they turned into stars.

And the stars became the constellation Ariadne, in the shape of a crown, where they remain today as a testament to immortal love.

Bacchus and Ariadne, by Antoine-Jean Gros, 1821.