Aphrodite is the goddess of love and beauty. She is said to have risen from the foam when Perseus cut off the head of Medusa along with Pegasus. Other stories say that her mother is Dione by Zeus.
The Graces are her attendants. Her sacred birds are the swan and the dove. She has no sacred cites or plants. Her husband is Hephaestus and her lover is Ares.
She is also called Cyperia because it was Cypress that she first came to. As soon as she touched the ground flowers grew where she walked.
She was taken up to Olympus and as soon as Hera saw how Zeus looked at Aphrodite she suggested that she be married at once. All the gods fought over her, making suggestions. Apollo offered her a chariot made from pure gold. Hermes offered to make her queen of the cross roads to hear all the stories so she's never be bored. Poseidon then said that he would be the best for her because he ruled the sea and offered her a pearl crown and an underwater palace of her own. Hera then nudged Hephaestus up to her and whispered in his ear, he then meekly said "I'd be a good husband for a girl like you. I work late." So Aphrodite chose Hephaestus as her husband (fulfilling Hera's promise to him). At the wedding feast she told her other suitors when to come with their gifts.
Aphrodite's Children
