Aphrodite

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In ancient Greece, temples were constructed exclusively for deities whose worship had been officially sanctioned. According to Greek beliefs, the temple served as a dwelling place for divine beings. Typically, these structures housed statues of gods, sacred objects, and various offerings, including temple furnishings. In the 1960s, excavations at Tyra uncovered an extraordinary terracotta figure from the 3rd-2nd centuries BC, depicting a nude Aphrodite with a large medallion adorning her chest. As the goddess of love, beauty, nature's splendor, eternal spring, and life itself, Aphrodite was deeply revered in ancient Greece. Her influence extended to navigation, fertility, marriage, and even childbirth. The cult of Aphrodite had been introduced by the first Greek colonists who settled on Thira, gaining significant popularity among city dwellers throughout the ancient era, although it remained a private cult.