Aphrodite and the Gods of Love: Worship (Getty Villa Exhibitions) (2024)

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Aphrodite and the Gods of Love: Worship (Getty Villa Exhibitions)? ›

Aphrodite and the Gods of Love: Worship (Getty Villa Exhibitions) Aphrodite held sway in many realms: sex, marriage, fertility, sailing, civic order, even war. The breadth and diversity of Aphrodite's powers meant that a single city might have multiple shrines, each dedicated to specific aspects of the goddess.

Aphrodite had affairs with Ares, Hermes, Dionysus, Hephaestus, and Poseidon. Also, a demi-god son of Zeus and Elektra named Anchises whose son, Aenaes, is the genealogical patriarch of my family. Possibly more, but these are the most notable ones.

She was married to Hephaistos (god of fire and metalworking) but was famously caught sleeping with Ares (god of war). Other divine lovers included Dionysos (god of wine) and Hermes (god of travel and commerce), from whom she gave birth to the fertility deities Priapos and Hermaphroditos, respectively.

Ares and Aphrodite never married, but there was a level of commitment that was shared between the two. Aphrodite went on to give birth to several children for Ares. Among these children were Phobos (god of fear and phobias), Deimos (god of terror), Harmonia (goddess of harmony), and Adrestia (goddess of revolt).

The statue, which stands seven-and-a-half-feet tall and weighs more than half a ton, had reigned since 1988 as the centerpiece of the Greek and Roman antiquities collection at the J. Paul Getty Museum near Malibu, California, the world's richest art institution.

She was often attracted by the many masculine features of older men she met in her life. She wasn't as flirtatious as people presume she is; rather one glance at her would catch the attention of all the gods and mortal men, causing them to madly desire/lust and fall in love for her.

The total number of Aphrodite's offspring is generally said to be fifteen, although some sources indicate a sixteenth: Tyche, goddess of fortune and luck. There are seven consorts listed as the fathers of these many children, including the gods Poseidon and Dionysus.

Of Aphrodite's mortal lovers, the most important were the Trojan shepherd Anchises, by whom she became the mother of Aeneas, and the handsome youth Adonis (in origin a Semitic nature deity and the consort of Ishtar-Astarte), who was killed by a boar while hunting and was lamented by women at the festival of Adonia.

Adonis was a handsome young man and Aphrodite fell deeply in love with him. Persephone was also in love with Adonis, so they went to Zeus to decide who would have the youth's love [see Persephone]. Zeus split Adonis' time into three parts.

No. Zeus is one of the few major Olympian deities with whom Aphrodite did not have a child. She did have children with Ares, Poseidon, Hermes, and Dionysus. She did not have a child with her husband, Hephaestus, or Zeus or Hades.

Did Aphrodite and Hephaestus have a child? ›

Some myths state that Hephaestus and Aphrodite only slept together once - on their wedding night and the product of this union was Eros (Aeros Cupid). Others state that they never had any children because Aphrodite was utterly repulsed by Hephaestus ugliness so they never slept together.

He was known for being the lover of Aphrodite aka Venus, shown with him here, who was married to Hephaestus aka Vulcan, the God of Fire. Seen here with his shield on the ground, Ares is embracing Aphrodite.

Every god—even Zeus himself—wanted this beautiful goddess as his wife. Some stories relate that Aphrodite was too proud and rejected them all. To punish her, Zeus had her marry Hephaestus, the lame and ugly god of the forge. This good-natured craftsman built her a splendid palace on Cyprus.

The Getty Villa is modeled on the Villa dei Papiri at Herculaneum. Buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, the ancient villa was rediscovered and explored by subterranean tunnels in the 1750s and '60s and was partially re-excavated in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Enjoy the Villa's largest garden, featuring a reflecting pool, colonnaded walkways, and views of the Pacific Ocean.

After Getty's death in 1976, the entire property was turned over to the Getty Trust for museum purposes. However, the collection outgrew the site, which has since been renamed the Getty Villa, and management sought a location more accessible to Los Angeles.

She was married to Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, but Aphrodite had many lovers among the gods, as well as among mortal men. Her lovers included Ares, the god of war, and the mortal Anchises, a Trojan prince with whom she had a famous son, Aeneas.

APHRODITE was the Olympian goddess of love, beauty, pleasure and procreation. This page describes Aphrodite's sexual liaisons with mortal men. Although five are described by classical writers, only the stories of Adonis and Ankhises are elaborated upon in any detail.

Aphrodite was the goddess of beauty and love. She was born out of the sea fully formed and riding a giant scallop shell. She had one husband and 8 consorts.

Aphrodite had a short temper

Aphrodite was no exception, and was at times short tempered and vengeful. One myth passed down is that Aphrodite cursed women of Lemnos because they refused to make sacrifice to her. Aphrodite's curse was that the women should smell so badly their men would refuse to have sex with them!