Myths and flora – Narcissus and Echo

Narcissus is a perennial flowering plant from a family of Amaryllidaceae. Long leaves arise from the bulbs and are alike grass and on a long vertical stems there is a flower composed of a cup and corona surrounded by petals of a flower cover.

The Latin name comes from the old Greek word nárkissos (Narcissus), a name for a young man in Greek mythology who fell in love with his own reflection. Fascinated, he tried to touch the character in the water but every time waves would appear and the character would disappear. The mountain nymph Echo, who had a wonderful voice, fell in love with Narcissus but was punished by the goddess Hera because she loved to gossip. She could no longer speak but she could only repeat the last words of the sentences spoken by others. One day, she met Narcissus and fell in love with him, but he rejected her. With the broken heart, Echo prayed the goddess Aphrodite to kill her. Her wish had been fulfilled but Aphrodite liked her voice and let it live forever as echo. Narcissus spent all his life on the shore of a mountain lake watching his reflection in the water. When the nymphs went to look for him one day, they could not found him; on the shore of the lake they found one beautiful flower bent over the water and they called it narcissus. (Željka Šaravanja)

Croatian post Ltd. Mostar has issued a commemorative postage stamp in block, postmark and the First Day Cover (FDC)