Pygmalion, King of Cyprus, was a talented sculptor. Among the statues he carved was one of a beautiful woman that he named Galatea. In time he fell wildly in love with Galatea. She made all the flesh-and-blood women he knew seem drab in comparison. Finally, Aphrodite, the Goddess of Beauty and Love, took pity on the lovesick Pygmalion. She turned Galatea into a living woman and presided over the marriage of the two.