Troy Reborn

In Homer's epic, the Iliad, the Greek army led by Agamemnon and Achilles attacked the city of Troy, led by Paris and Hector, in order to seize Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world.

Zeus was notoriously promiscuous. This time, he had set his sights on the sea goddess Thetis, but his wife, Queen of Heaven Hera, discovered it. So Hera married Thetis to the mortal hero Peleus, putting an end to Zeus's intentions.

On the day of Thetis and Peleus's wedding, they invited all the gods to a feast, but left out Eris, goddess of strife. Feeling insulted, Eris arrived uninvited and left a huge, magnificent golden apple at the banquet, inscribed with the words "καλλστ," meaning "for the most beautiful goddess."

The three goddesses with the highest status and greatest beauty present—the mother of the gods Hera, the goddess of wisdom Athena, and Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty—argued endlessly over the golden apple. They asked Zeus to decide who should receive it. Zeus believed that a handsome, distinguished mortal prince, Paris, was more suited to judge this difficult matter. At the time, Paris was herding sheep on Mount Ida near Troy.

Thus, Queen of Heaven Hera, Athena, goddess of wisdom, and Aphrodite, goddess of love, traveled to Mount Ida under the guidance of Hermes, messenger of the gods, and asked Prince Paris to arbitrate. All three goddesses hoped Paris would award the golden apple to them, so each made him a promise.

Hera, mother of the gods, said that if Paris gave her the golden apple, she would make him ruler of the richest country in the world. Athena, goddess of wisdom, promised to make him the wisest man alive. Venus, goddess of love, promised him the most beautiful woman in all the world. Paris gave