According to the stories that sprang up about her, she was as vain as she was beautiful, and she was very beautiful. The Greek word aphros means “foam,” and Hesiod relates in his Theogony that Aphrodite was born from the white foam produced by the severed genitals of Uranus … Suda On Line) (Byzantine Greek lexicon C10th A.D.) : Ptolemy Hephaestion, New History Book 7 (summary from Photius, Myriobiblon 190) (trans. She appeared out of the foam of the sea, floating on a scallop shell to the island of Cypress. Her origin story has many versions, as it has been transmitted throughout generations. ", Ovid, Metamorphoses 5. To the Romans, Aphrodite was also known as Venus. Lamb) (Greek philosopher C4th B.C.) Poor Helen was married to the king of Sparta. ", For MORE information on this Titan-goddess see DIONE. "Now the ancients record in their myths that Priapos was the son of Dionysos and Aphrodite and they present a plausible argument for this lineage; for men when under the influence of wine find the members of their bodies tense and inclined to the pleasures of love. And weddings went all astray in human life. Aphrodite Greek Mythology Project. sea-born (pontogenes) . to C1st A.D.) : The first says that she was the daughter of Uranus, the Greek god of the sky. It is said that Adonis was born of the illicit union between King Theias of Smyrna and his daughter Myrrha. There Typhon, of wh… Her personality has changed throughout time as different stories attributed to her have changed. She saw her future husband. The first is simple: She was the child of Zeus and Dione. ", Nonnus, Dionysiaca 41. With a feminist view. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : Aphrodite had no interest in being married at all. Both girls were probably Zeus' daughters. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C7th to 4th B.C.) Search this site. Theog. 435 ff (trans. The famous Botticelli painting depicting Aphrodite floating on a seashell was based on the second version— that she was born from the sea-foam. the city of Beroe or Beruit in Phoinikia] first received Kypris [Aphrodite] within her welcoming portal, newly born from the brine; when the water impregnated from the furrow of Ouranos was delivered of deepsea Aphrodite; when without marriage, the seed plowed the flood with male fertility, and of itself shaped the foam into a daughter, and Phusis (Nature) was the midwife--coming up with the goddess there was that embroidered strap which ran round her loins like a belt, set about the queen's body in a girdle of itself . 2. Rackham) (Roman rhetorician C1st B.C.) She supposedly arose from the foam when the Titan Cronus slew his father Uranus and threw his genitals into the sea. ", The Anacreontea, Fragment 57 (trans. Greek Lyric II) (C6th B.C.) She is identified with the planet Venus, which is named after the Roman goddess Venus, with whom Aphrodite was extensively syncretized. ", Homeric Hymn 6 to Aphrodite (trans. Rouse) (Greek epic C5th A.D.) : Showerman) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. "[Depicted on the throne of Zeus at Olympia:] is Eros (Love) receiving Aphrodite as she rises from the sea, and Aphrodite is being crowned by Peitho (Persuasion). 370 ff (trans. by Legends and Myths | Nov 3, 2016 | Mythological Beings. Shewring) (Greek epic C8th B.C.) And when they had fully decked her, they brought her to the gods, who welcomed her when they saw her, giving her their hands. . 10 (trans. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : Nonnus, Dionysiaca 14. "By Dione he [Zeus] had Aphrodite. 319 ff (trans. ", Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 5. Pearse) (Greek mythographer C1st to C2nd A.D.) : Nonnus, Dionysiaca 24. : Regardless of her origins, Aphrodite was soon adopted as one of the main Olympian Gods and Goddesses in Greek Mythology. : Hephaistus was said to have built for her a palace made of gold and jewels in idyllic seclusion, somewhere in the island, most probably in the Akamas area. "[Hephaistos threatens to return Aphrodite to her father Zeus when he learns of her adultery :] ‘Aphrodite had Zeus for father . The Greeks were familiar with all of them, and identified them with her. Hesiod, Works and Days 60 ff (trans. Oldfather) (Greek historian C1st B.C.) 30 (trans. 458 ff (trans.Boyle) (Roman poetry C1st B.C. Each one of them prayed that he might lead her home to be his wedded wife, so greatly were they amazed at the beauty of violet-crowned Kythereia. 6. to 2nd A.D.) : Quintus Smyrnaeus, Fall of Troy 5. He had genitals [rising up] above his butt. Once Dione [Aphrodite], in flight from terrible Typhon (when Jupiter [Zeus] armed in heaven's defence), reached the Euphrates with tiny Cupidos [Eros] in tow and sat by the hem of Palestine's stream. There Typhon, of whom we have already spoken, suddenly appeared. ", Homer, Odyssey 8. She is now the symbol of love, sex, affection, and mutual attraction. 261 ff (trans. to C1st A.D.) : Aphrodite was a powerful goddess of love and beauty. Shewring) (Greek epic C8th B.C.) "The clouds parted, and Caelus (Heaven) [i.e. The Moon has been an inspiration for writers and other artists throughout the ages—it is, no doubt, the muse of hundreds of thousands of humans having lived on Earth. Meanwhile the rich-tressed Kharites (Graces) and cheerful Horai (Seasons) dance with Harmonia (Harmony) and Hebe (Youth) and Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, holding each other by the wrist. Vellacott) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) . to C1st A.D.) : Pseudo-Hyginus, Astronomica 2. "Kypris [Aphrodite] fled like the wind from the pursuit of her lascivious father [Zeus], that she might not see an unhallowed bedfellow in her own begetter, Zeus. A ccording to Greek mythology, Aphrodite was married to Hephaistus, the smith of the gods. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : Strabo, Geography 11. Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C7th - 4th B.C.) "[Depicted on the base of the statue of Poseidon at Korinthos:] Thalassa (Sea) holding up the young Aphrodite, and on either side are the nymphs called Nereides.