KYTHIRA TRAVEL GUIDE

KYTHIRA > MYTHOLOGY

MYTHOLOGY

According to Theogonia by Hsiodou Aphrodite (Venus) was born from the celestial body after Kronos (Saturn) was separated from his son in the seas of Kythira. The sea had held the celestial members for a long time in her vast form, a foam took shape around them and through the foam emerged Aphodite; the waves drifted the view to Paphos in Cyprus, according to legend, and was worshipped as the god and the guardian of the island.

Aphrodite has the nickname of Kytheria seemingly generated from the island’s name. The goddess had three forms as worshipped in ancient times: Ourania - guardian of love and innocent affection in Kythira, Pandimos - guardian of physical love and creation in Cyprus, and the lesser know goddess Apostrophia - guardian of morals and ethics and the protector of husbands and children in Thebes. The foundation of the temple in her honour in the early years gave the island the Homeric characterization of zathea, meaning Madonna.

Her emergence from the sea is interpreted as the emergence of the island itself from the sea, according to Palaeontologists. This is confirmed by the rich sea life fossils found at Mitata and Viaradika on Kythira.