Aphrodite loved Adonis more than anyone else, for he was a spirited and handsome young hunter. She left her home on Olympus to live in the woods, where she dressed as a huntress and spent her days with him. Together, they roamed through groves and over hills, cheering on hounds and chasing harmless creatures. Though she repeatedly warned him against hunting dangerous beasts like lions and wolves, Adonis merely laughed.
One day, after such a warning, Aphrodite departed for Olympus in her chariot. By chance, Adonis's hounds roused a wild boar, exciting the young hunter. He struck the boar with an arrow, but the wounded beast turned on him, driving its white tusk deep into his side and trampling him to death. Upon returning to find her lover lifeless, Aphrodite wept bitterly. Unable to retrieve him from the underworld, she sprinkled nectar on his blood, transforming it into an anemone—a delicate purple flower.
Still grief-stricken, Aphrodite flew to Zeus and begged for his sympathy. Hades, however, was unwilling to release Adonis. After much dispute, a compromise was reached: Adonis would spend half the year above ground with Aphrodite and the other half in the Elysian Fields. Thus, each spring he returns to her loving embrace, only to depart reluctantly for the underworld when winter comes.