In Greek mythology and religion, Zephyrus (also Zephyr) is the god and personification of the west wind, one of the Anemoi. Son of Eos and Astraeus, he is the gentlest and most favourable of the winds, associated with flowers, springtime, and procreation. In myth he is known for his unrequited love for the Spartan prince Hyacinthus and, in Roman tradition, for his union with Flora (Chloris). His Roman equivalent is Favonius.
Adapted from Wikipedia, "Zephyrus" · CC BY-SA 4.0
I.Family
Zephyrus, like Boreas, Eurus, and Notus, is son of Eos by Astraeus; Ovid calls the four "Astraean brothers." Aeschylus's Agamemnon instead makes him a son of Gaia. He is brother to the star-gods and Astraea, and half-brother to Memnon and Emathion.
Greek tradition often makes him consort of Iris, the rainbow messenger; by her Nonnus names Pothos as their son, and Alcaeus also makes him father of Eros. By the Harpy Podarge he sired Achilles' talking horses Balius and Xanthus. Other children include Carpus ("fruit") by a Hora, and, in Pseudo-Oppian, tigers by an unnamed consort.
II.West wind and epic roles
With Boreas, Zephyrus is among the most prominent Anemoi; Hesiod names him with Boreas and Notus as the useful winds. Homer places the winds under Aeolus on Aeolia: Aeolus frees only Zephyrus to blow Odysseus gently toward Ithaca, until the crew open the bag and the other winds drive them back. In the Iliad, Iris summons Zephyrus and Boreas to kindle Patroclus's funeral pyre.
In the tale of Eros and Psyche, Zephyrus carries Psyche on a soft breeze from a cliff to Eros's palace, and later lets her sisters fall to their deaths when they jump expecting the same aid. He is also linked with swans, said to join their song when the mild west wind blows.
III.Hyacinthus and plant myths
In his best-known myth Zephyrus loved the Spartan prince Hyacinthus, who preferred Apollo. While Apollo and Hyacinthus threw the discus, Zephyrus deflected Apollo's throw and killed the youth; from Hyacinthus's blood sprang the hyacinth flower. Some versions replace Zephyrus with Boreas; many omit the wind-god entirely and treat the death as Apollo's accident.
A rarer tale pairs him with Cyparissus, who flees and becomes a cypress; elsewhere Apollo fills that role. These stories connect the gentle west wind with flowers and spring while still portraying him as a harsh lover.
IV.Iconography, cult, and Favonius
Like the other Anemoi, Zephyrus is winged in art and can be hard to distinguish from Eros. Vases often show him pursuing or embracing Hyacinthus. On the Tower of the Winds in Athens he appears as a beardless youth carrying a cloak full of flowers; on the Pergamon Altar the winds pull Hera's chariot in equine form.
Joint cult of the Winds is attested at Titane and Coronea; Attic Laciadae had an altar for Zephyrus. Romans called him Favonius ("the favouring"), lord of plants and flowers; Ovid and others marry him to Flora (linked to the Greek nymph Chloris) after he abducts her and grants her dominion over blooms.