Textiles and Dress

Girdle of Aphrodite

The magical Girdle of Aphrodite or Venus (Greek: ἱμάς, himás: 'strap, thong'; κεστός, kestós: 'girdle, belt'; Latin: cingulum Veneri, cestus Veneris), variously interpreted as girdle, belt, breast-band, and otherwise, is one of the erotic accessories of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. According to Homer, the girdle was imbued with the power to inspire the passion of desire in mortals and immortals alike. Hera, in her role as the goddess of marriage, sometimes borrowed it from Aphrodite to mitigate lovers' quarrels, to instigate the bridal contests of suitors, and on at least one occasion to manipulate her husband Zeus.

Also on this shelf

See also

• ▸Gentildonna
• ▸European jackal
• ▸Chokha

Uncatalogued shelf

Text from Wikipedia; plate via Wikimedia Commons. Text CC BY-SA 4.0; plate freely licensed (see Commons). Source record. Images and catalogue data are reproduced from open-access collections.