The myth of the birth of Aphrodite from the sea was very famous in antiquity. According to Hesiod, at the time of the creation of the world, there existed only Ge (Earth), and Ouranos (Sky) who procreated together monstrous creatures. Ge asked one of her sons, Cronos, to mutilate his father. Cronos cut his father’s genitals which fell into the sea. From the foam that was formed, a maiden was born, first taken by the waves to Kythera, then brought to Cyprus.
This maiden was the goddess Aphrodite. Aphrodite was closely associated with Kinyras, a mythical king of Pafos, a musician and inventor of metallurgy, famous for his beauty and his wealth. He was her beloved priest.
But one of his daughters, Smyrna, offended Aphrodite who punished her by making her fall in love with her own father. Threatened by him, she was saved by Aphrodite, who turned her into a myrtle tree. From the trunk of the tree Adonis was born, whom Aphrodite loved dearly.