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<H1 ALIGN=center>Aphrodite - Venus</H1>
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<P><B>Aphrodite</B>, in <I>Greek mythology</I>, the goddess of love and beauty and the counterpart of the Roman goddess Venus. In the Iliad by Homer she is said to be the daughter of Zeus and Dione, one of his consorts, but in the <A HREF="theogony.html#Venus">Theogony of Hesiod</A> she is described as having sprung from the foam of the sea; etymologically, her name may mean "foam-risen". According to Homer, Aphrodite is the wife of Hephaestus, the lame and ugly god of fire. Among her lovers was Ares, god of war, who in later mythology was represented as her husband. She was the rival of Persephone, queen of the underworld, for the love of the beautiful Greek youth Adonis.
<P><B>Venus</B>, in <I>Roman mythology</I>, originally a goddess of gardens and fields but later identified with Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. In imperial times she was worshipped under several aspects. As <I>Venus Genetrix</I>, she was venerated as the mother of the hero Aeneas, the founder of the Roman people; as <I>Venus Felix</I>, the bringer of good fortune; as <I>Venus Victrix</I>, the bringer of victory; and as <I>Venus Verticordia</I>, the protector of feminine chastity. Venus was the wife of Vulcan, god of metalwork, but she was often unfaithful to him. Among her many lovers were Mars, the god of war; the handsome shepherd Adonis; and Anchises, the father of Aeneas. Venus was also the mother of Cupid, god of love.
<P>Perhaps the most famous legend about Aphrodite concerns the cause of the Trojan War. Eris, the personification of discord — the only goddess not invited to the wedding of King Peleus and the sea nymph Thetis — resentfully tossed into the banquet hall a golden apple, on which were inscribed the words "for the fairest". When Zeus refused to judge between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, the three goddesses who claimed the apple, they asked Paris, prince of Troy, to make the award. Each goddess offered him a bribe: Hera, that he would be a powerful ruler; Athena, that he would achieve great military fame; and Aphrodite, that he should have the fairest woman in the world. Paris declared Aphrodite the fairest and chose as his prize Helen of Troy, the wife of the Greek king Menelaus. Paris's abduction of Helen led to the Trojan War.
<P>Probably of Near Eastern origin, Aphrodite was identified in early Greek religious belief with the Phoenician goddess Astarte and was known under a variety of cult titles, including Aphrodite Urania, queen of the heavens, and Aphrodite Pandemos, goddess of the whole people.
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