Aphrodite

Epic card · No. 6315

Aphrodite ( ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love and beauty. Aphrodite's main cult centers were Cythera, Cyprus, Corinth, and Athens. In Athens, she was celebrated annually during the Aphrodisia festival. In Laconia, Aphrodite was worshipped as a warrior goddess. She was the patron goddess of prostitutes, an association which led early scholars to propose the concept of sacred prostitution in Greco-Roman culture, an idea now generally seen as erroneous. Aphrodite had many epithets, many of which emphasized an aspect of her character or were used by local cults. Thus she was known as Cytherea (Lady of Cythera) and Cypris (Lady of Cyprus), because both places claimed to be the site of her birth. The origins of Aphrodite have been the subject of scholarly debate. Proposed influences on her origins have included Near Eastern love goddesses, an indigenous Cypriot goddess, and a Proto-Indo-European dawn goddess. In Homer's Iliad, she is the daughter of Zeus and Dione. In Hesiod...

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