To claim the prize promised by Aphrodite, Paris travels to the court of Menelaus, where he is honored as guest. Athena is nearest to Hermes with her characteristic weapons by her side, Aphrodite is in the middle with her son Eros hugging her leg, and Hera stands on the far right. Paris contemplates the goddesses while Hermes holds up the apple. “The Judgment of Paris” by Peter Paul Reubens (ca. Aphrodite promises him Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world as his wife, and Paris names her winner of the competition. From Hera, Paris would have royal power, while Athena offers victory in battle. To sway his vote, each goddess offers Paris a bribe. Zeus appoints the Trojan prince Paris to judge who is most beautiful of the three. All the gods were invited to attend except for Eris, whose name means “discord.” Furious at her exclusion, Eris comes to the party anyway and tosses an apple to the goddesses Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite on which is written “for the most beautiful.” Each goddess claims the apple is meant for her and the ensuing dispute threatens the peace of Olympus. But though Menelaus was valiant and wealthy, Helen’s love for him would prove tenuous.Īround this time there was a great event among the Olympians: the marriage of the goddess Thetis to the mortal Peleus. He kidnapped her and hid her in his city of Athens, but when he was away, Helen’s brothers, the Dioscuri, rescued her and brought her home.Īs an adult, Helen was courted by many suitors, out of whom she chose Menelaus, the king of Sparta. Her reputation was so great that even as a young child, the hero Theseus desired her for his bride.

Helen was destined to be the most beautiful woman in the world. In this version, too, Helen hatched from an egg. In another, older myth, Helen’s parents were Zeus and Nemesis, the goddess of vengeance. The boys, collectively called the Dioscuri, became the divine protectors of sailors at sea, while Helen and Clytemnestra would go on to play important roles in the saga of the Trojan War. įrom one egg came the semi-divine children, Helen and Polydeuces (who is called Pollux in Latin), and from the other egg came the mortals Clytemnestra and Castor. “Leda and the Swan” by Cesare da Sesto, copy of lost painting by Leonardo da Vinci (1515-1520). On the same night, Leda slept with her husband Tyndareus and as a result gave birth to four children, who hatched from two eggs. In the form of a swan, Zeus either seduced or assaulted Helen’s mother Leda. Helen is among the mythical characters fathered by Zeus.

When considering the many Greek and Roman myths that surround Helen, from her childhood to her life after the Trojan War, a layered and fascinating woman emerges. But Helen’s character is more complex than it seems.

In Greek mythology, Helen of Troy is known as the woman whose beauty sparked the Trojan War.

God of war abandon ship