Philemon << fuh LEE muhn or fy LEE muhn >> and Baucis << BAW sihs >> are the central characters in an ancient Greek myth. Philemon, a pious and dutiful peasant, lived with his devoted wife Baucis in the land of Phrygia. One day, two travelers called at their little cottage seeking shelter. Philemon and Baucis received them hospitably and gave them food and rest. The travelers were in fact the gods Zeus and Hermes in disguise. They had asked the wealthy neighbors of Philemon and Baucis for shelter but had been refused. When the gods sent a flood to destroy Phrygia, all the inhabitants were drowned except Philemon and Baucis. Their cottage became a temple, and they became the temple’s priest and priestess. When asked for a wish, they requested that they both die at the same moment. After a long life, their wish was granted.
Philemon was turned into an oak tree and Baucis into a linden tree. Their branches intertwined at the top. Philemon and Baucis are also characters in Part II of the play Faust by the German writer Johann von Goethe.
