Venus (mythology)

The Birth of Venus, by Botticelli

Venus is the Roman goddess of love, equivalent to Greek Aphrodite and Etruscan Turan. Other figures possibly corresponding to Venus are:

• Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli in Aztec mythology
• Kukulcan in Maya mythology
• Sif in the Norse mythos

Her cult began in Ardea and Lavinium, Latium. On August 18, 293 BC, her oldest temple was built. August 18 was then a festival called the Vinalia Rustica. On April 1, the Veneralia was celebrated in honor of Venus Verticordia, the protector against vice. On April 23 215 BC, a temple was built on the Capitol dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasum.

Julius Caesar introduced Venus Genetrix as a goddess of motherhood and domesticity.

Venus was often depicted in painting and in sculpture.

See also: Aphrodite, Suadela, Venus (planet), The birth of Venus