diff --git a/regress/expected/cypher_match.out b/regress/expected/cypher_match.out
index ab51486b3..f82acf05b 100644
--- a/regress/expected/cypher_match.out
+++ b/regress/expected/cypher_match.out
@@ -3956,6 +3956,116 @@ NOTICE:  graph "issue_2378" has been dropped
  
 (1 row)
 
+--
+-- Issue 2473: a query that begins with OPTIONAL MATCH drops the row when the
+-- pattern has no match.
+--
+-- Cypher gives every OPTIONAL MATCH left join semantics.  With no clause to
+-- its left it joins against the implicit single row that begins a query, so a
+-- leading OPTIONAL MATCH whose pattern matches nothing must still emit one
+-- row, with NULLs in the optional columns.  Before the fix the transform had
+-- no previous clause to join against and fell through to the plain MATCH
+-- path, which returns no rows at all.
+--
+SELECT create_graph('issue_2473');
+NOTICE:  graph "issue_2473" has been created
+ create_graph 
+--------------
+ 
+(1 row)
+
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    CREATE (:Person {name: 'Alice'}),
+           (:Person {name: 'Bob'})
+$$) AS (v agtype);
+ v 
+---
+(0 rows)
+
+-- No vertex carries this label; expect one row with n = NULL.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+ n 
+---
+ 
+(1 row)
+
+-- The pattern does match; expect exactly the matching rows, and no extra
+-- null-filled row from the synthesized left side.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    RETURN n.name AS name
+    ORDER BY name
+$$) AS (name agtype);
+  name   
+---------
+ "Alice"
+ "Bob"
+(2 rows)
+
+-- Relationship pattern with no match; every optional column is NULL.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (a:Person)-[r:NoSuchEdge]->(b)
+    RETURN a.name AS name, r, b
+$$) AS (name agtype, r agtype, b agtype);
+ name | r | b 
+------+---+---
+      |   | 
+(1 row)
+
+-- A WHERE that no binding survives still preserves the row.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    WHERE n.name = 'Nobody'
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+ n 
+---
+ 
+(1 row)
+
+-- The synthesized left side is internal; RETURN * must not expose it.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN *
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+ n 
+---
+ 
+(1 row)
+
+-- A leading MATCH is unaffected and still returns no rows.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+ n 
+---
+(0 rows)
+
+-- The guard against MATCH following OPTIONAL MATCH still applies when the
+-- OPTIONAL MATCH leads the query.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    MATCH (m:Person)
+    RETURN n, m
+$$) AS (n agtype, m agtype);
+ERROR:  MATCH cannot follow OPTIONAL MATCH
+LINE 1: SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+                                            ^
+SELECT drop_graph('issue_2473', true);
+NOTICE:  drop cascades to 3 other objects
+DETAIL:  drop cascades to table issue_2473._ag_label_vertex
+drop cascades to table issue_2473._ag_label_edge
+drop cascades to table issue_2473."Person"
+NOTICE:  graph "issue_2473" has been dropped
+ drop_graph 
+------------
+ 
+(1 row)
+
 --
 -- Clean up
 --
diff --git a/regress/sql/cypher_match.sql b/regress/sql/cypher_match.sql
index 8da012ff8..8c9ebd6e3 100644
--- a/regress/sql/cypher_match.sql
+++ b/regress/sql/cypher_match.sql
@@ -1689,6 +1689,72 @@ $$) AS (name agtype, friend agtype);
 
 SELECT drop_graph('issue_2378', true);
 
+--
+-- Issue 2473: a query that begins with OPTIONAL MATCH drops the row when the
+-- pattern has no match.
+--
+-- Cypher gives every OPTIONAL MATCH left join semantics.  With no clause to
+-- its left it joins against the implicit single row that begins a query, so a
+-- leading OPTIONAL MATCH whose pattern matches nothing must still emit one
+-- row, with NULLs in the optional columns.  Before the fix the transform had
+-- no previous clause to join against and fell through to the plain MATCH
+-- path, which returns no rows at all.
+--
+SELECT create_graph('issue_2473');
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    CREATE (:Person {name: 'Alice'}),
+           (:Person {name: 'Bob'})
+$$) AS (v agtype);
+
+-- No vertex carries this label; expect one row with n = NULL.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+
+-- The pattern does match; expect exactly the matching rows, and no extra
+-- null-filled row from the synthesized left side.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    RETURN n.name AS name
+    ORDER BY name
+$$) AS (name agtype);
+
+-- Relationship pattern with no match; every optional column is NULL.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (a:Person)-[r:NoSuchEdge]->(b)
+    RETURN a.name AS name, r, b
+$$) AS (name agtype, r agtype, b agtype);
+
+-- A WHERE that no binding survives still preserves the row.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    WHERE n.name = 'Nobody'
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+
+-- The synthesized left side is internal; RETURN * must not expose it.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN *
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+
+-- A leading MATCH is unaffected and still returns no rows.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    MATCH (n:NoSuchLabel)
+    RETURN n
+$$) AS (n agtype);
+
+-- The guard against MATCH following OPTIONAL MATCH still applies when the
+-- OPTIONAL MATCH leads the query.
+SELECT * FROM cypher('issue_2473', $$
+    OPTIONAL MATCH (n:Person)
+    MATCH (m:Person)
+    RETURN n, m
+$$) AS (n agtype, m agtype);
+
+SELECT drop_graph('issue_2473', true);
+
 --
 -- Clean up
 --
diff --git a/src/backend/parser/cypher_analyze.c b/src/backend/parser/cypher_analyze.c
index 5dd53dcd0..39422883e 100644
--- a/src/backend/parser/cypher_analyze.c
+++ b/src/backend/parser/cypher_analyze.c
@@ -966,6 +966,26 @@ static Query *analyze_cypher(List *stmt, ParseState *parent_pstate,
      * the clauses is inverted.
      */
     clause = NULL;
+
+    /*
+     * A query that begins with OPTIONAL MATCH still has to emit a row.
+     * openCypher gives every OPTIONAL MATCH left join semantics; with no
+     * clause to its left it joins against the implicit single row that
+     * begins a query, so a pattern matching nothing yields one row of nulls
+     * rather than no rows at all. transform_cypher_match_pattern builds that
+     * join out of the previous clause, so give the leading OPTIONAL MATCH a
+     * previous clause that produces exactly one row.
+     *
+     * This has to happen here rather than in the transform: the transform
+     * temporarily clears prev to recurse into the join's right side, and
+     * relies on prev being NULL there to take the plain MATCH path.
+     */
+    if (stmt != NIL && is_ag_node(linitial(stmt), cypher_match) &&
+        ((cypher_match *)linitial(stmt))->optional)
+    {
+        clause = make_optional_match_unit_clause();
+    }
+
     foreach (lc, stmt)
     {
         cypher_clause *next;
diff --git a/src/backend/parser/cypher_clause.c b/src/backend/parser/cypher_clause.c
index 147e3e74e..9560a04c1 100644
--- a/src/backend/parser/cypher_clause.c
+++ b/src/backend/parser/cypher_clause.c
@@ -78,6 +78,7 @@
 #define AGE_VARNAME_DELETE_CLAUSE AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"delete_clause"
 #define AGE_VARNAME_MERGE_CLAUSE AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"merge_clause"
 #define AGE_VARNAME_ID AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"id"
+#define AGE_VARNAME_OPTIONAL_MATCH_UNIT AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"optional_match_unit"
 #define AGE_VARNAME_SET_CLAUSE AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"set_clause"
 #define AGE_VARNAME_SET_VALUE AGE_DEFAULT_VARNAME_PREFIX"set_value"
 
@@ -3991,6 +3992,42 @@ static void get_res_cols(ParseState *pstate, ParseNamespaceItem *l_pnsi,
     *res_colvars = list_concat(*res_colvars, colvars);
 }
 
+/*
+ * make_optional_match_unit_clause
+ *      Build a clause that yields exactly one row, with no user-visible
+ *      columns, to stand in as the left side of a leading OPTIONAL MATCH.
+ *
+ * This mirrors transform_cypher_with, which likewise wraps a synthesized
+ * cypher_return in a cypher_clause. The single projected item is a null
+ * constant named with the hidden variable prefix, so expand_pnsi_attrs keeps
+ * it out of RETURN * expansion.
+ */
+cypher_clause *make_optional_match_unit_clause(void)
+{
+    A_Const *unit_value;
+    ResTarget *unit_item;
+    cypher_return *return_clause;
+    cypher_clause *wrapper;
+
+    unit_value = makeNode(A_Const);
+    unit_value->isnull = true;
+    unit_value->location = -1;
+
+    unit_item = makeNode(ResTarget);
+    unit_item->name = pstrdup(AGE_VARNAME_OPTIONAL_MATCH_UNIT);
+    unit_item->indirection = NIL;
+    unit_item->val = (Node *)unit_value;
+    unit_item->location = -1;
+
+    return_clause = make_ag_node(cypher_return);
+    return_clause->items = list_make1(unit_item);
+
+    wrapper = palloc0(sizeof(*wrapper));
+    wrapper->self = (Node *)return_clause;
+
+    return wrapper;
+}
+
 /*
  * transform_cypher_optional_match_clause
  *      Transform the previous clauses and OPTIONAL MATCH clauses to be LATERAL LEFT JOIN
diff --git a/src/include/parser/cypher_clause.h b/src/include/parser/cypher_clause.h
index d0fc3ca22..90d5ae461 100644
--- a/src/include/parser/cypher_clause.h
+++ b/src/include/parser/cypher_clause.h
@@ -32,6 +32,7 @@ struct cypher_clause
     cypher_clause *prev; /* previous clause */
 };
 
+cypher_clause *make_optional_match_unit_clause(void);
 Query *transform_cypher_clause(cypher_parsestate *cpstate,
                                cypher_clause *clause);