Aphrodite

Aphrodisias, Turkey. An ancient city of the Caria region in southwestern Asia Minor (now Turkey), Aphrodisias was a favourite of Julius Caesar. The ruins of the city include bathhouses, a stadium, a theatre, a market, and the Temple of Aphrodite (shown here). The temple was originally built around the time of the birth of Christ, and was reconstructed as a Christian basilica in the 5th century.

In Greek mythology, the goddess of love (Roman Venus, Phoenician Astarte, Babylonian Ishtar). She is said to be either a daughter of Zeus (in Homer) or sprung from the foam of the sea (in Hesiod). She was the unfaithful wife of Hephaestus, the god of fire, and the mother of Eros.

Aphrodite surpassed all the other goddesses in beauty, and hence received the prize of beauty from Paris. She likewise had the power of granting beauty and invincible charm to others. In the vegetable kingdom the myrtle, rose, apple, and poppy, among others, were sacred to Aphrodite, as, in the animal world, were the sparrow, dove, swan, and swallow. Centres of her worship were Cyprus (Paphos) and Cythera.