Clytie was a beautiful sea nymph who lived in a wonderful palace under the sea. Her dress was of pale green sea moss, and she wore ornaments of delicate pink coral in her sunny curls. Her carriage was an exquisite shell of many brilliant hues, which glittered in the sunlight, and gold fish were her strange and beautiful horses.

One day, when she was driving over the surface of the sea, she saw the glorious god Apollo in his golden chariot. Day after day she watched him journey through the deep blue sky, and hoped he would see her. Alas! he never noticed the lonely sea maid, so far below.

At last she left her chariot, and all day long watched him from the shore. When the sun had gone and she started to return to her home under the waves, she could not move. Her feet had become fastened to the soil and her form began to change into the sunflower. Her green dress became the stalk and leaves, and her golden hair changed into the yellow petals.

But the flower still loves the sun. In the morning it looks toward the east and rejoices when the sun appears above the horizon, following his course and slowly turning its face toward the west.

So this flower is the emblem of constancy. Poets often speak of the great love and faithfulness of Clytie, and artists paint her picture or sculpture her form.

In the art galleries may be found a lovely bust of a young girl. The sculptor is unknown, but the bust is supposed to be one of Clytie, for the shoulders seem to rise from the leaves of the sunflower.