The tragic lover of myth is Leander, a character from Greek mythology. He was a young man from Abydos who fell in love with the priestess of Aphrodite, Hero, who lived in Sestos on the other side of the Hellespont. Leander swam across the strait every night to be with her, guided by a lamp that Hero lit for him. Unfortunately, one night a storm blew out the lamp and Leander drowned in the waters. Hero then threw herself off the tower in grief.