In Greek mythology, Cyparissus or Kyparissos was a boy beloved by Apollo or in some versions by other deities. In the best-known version of the story, the favorite companion of Cyparissus was a tamed stag, which he accidentally killed with his hunting javelin as it lay sleeping in the woods. The boy's grief was such that it transformed him into a cypress tree, a classical symbol of mourning. The myth is thus aetiological in explaining the relation of the tree to its cultural significance. The subject is mainly known from Hellenized Latin literature and frescoes from Pompeii. No Greek hero cult devoted to Cyparissus has been identified.
Cyparissus (c. 1625) by Jacopo Vignali: the boy mourns his pet deer (Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg)
Cyparissus, fresco in Pompeii, 1st century
Apollo, Hyacinthus, and Cyparissus Making Music and Singing by Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov 1831-1834
Mosaic of Cyparissus found in Ratae Corieltauvorum depicting Cupid
Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the Cupressus genus of the Cupressaceae family, typically found in warm-temperate and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.
Actinostrobus arenarius
Austrocedrus chilensis
Callitris preissii
Chamaecyparis pisifera, bonsai