The Great Goddess of Cyprus

The origin of Aphrodite, Greek goddess of love (later Venus for the Romans), is explored in this documentary by Stavros Papageorghiou. The ancients told two stories about her birth, one situated in Cythera, an isle off the southern Peloponnesus, and the other in Cyprus. Some scholars argue that the different legends indicate two originally separate goddesses who were amalgamated into one, but this film—which is also intended to encourage Cypriot tourism—decisively opts for the latter origin story. Drawing on scattered references in classical literature together with archaeological findings from sites on Cyprus, the documentary argues that Aphrodite was initially the Cyprus fertility totem Anassa, later found and adopted by Greeks during the 12th century B.C.E. and given a Hellenized name and function. Much of the evidence has been collected by French academic Jacqueline Karageorghis, who presents her findings here in direct interviews and excerpts from lectures. The filmmaker also traces Aphrodite's later history as a patroness of what amounted to sacred prostitution in cities like Corinth; her role in the rise of Rome as the supposed mother of Aeneas; and the later closure of all pagan temples—including that of the goddess on Cyprus—by the Christian emperor Theodosius in the 4th century C.E. The Great Goddess of Cyprus doesn't really add anything new to accepted scholarship on Aphrodite, but it does present existing information clearly and persuasively, and features an engaging spokesperson in Karageorghis. A strong optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)