Salt gathering in Croisic (France) in the 17th cent. CE. Drawing by Lambert Doomer (1624-1700) / 1645-1646
Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was born from salty sea foam, and that is why she is sometimes called Haligeneous ("salt-born"). The myth tells us that this foam came from the genitals of Ouranos (the sky). They fell near the island of Kythera, and this is where and how Aphrodite was born.
As you can see, salt and Aphrodite go together. Salt was associated with fertility and reproduction. For instance, Plutarch wrote in his Symposiakon that "salt encourages remarkably generation", reshaping Aristotle's notes in the "History of Animals" that "if they merely lick salt, mice get pregnant".
Aphrodite is sometimes shown holding a small salt bag in her hand, and those who attended the Aphrodisia—the sacred festivals of Aphrodite—were required to bring and carry a salt bag to honor the salt-born goddess.
Glass alabastron with dark purple nets and zigzags, Eastern Mediterranean / Late 6th-5th cent. BCE (Archaic Greece)
Different types of murex secrete different types of purple. The purple is influenced by the chemical composition of their sacs, but also their sex and size. Sunlight, temperature, humidity and salinity can also influence the color's brightness, tone, and intensity.
Dyers could obtain a greater variety of color shades by mixing different types of shellfish, controlling the fermentation process, or adding other ingredients such as honey or flour.
Dove flying right, reverse type of a rare bronze coin of Kythera / 100-50 BCE (Hellenistic Greece)
Kythera is the name of an island as well as a city. The strategic position of the island—just south of the Peloponnese—made it a target for the Athenians during the Peloponnesian War. Athens occupied it during most of the war and used it to support trade and to raid Lakonia.
Kythera's banner was inspired by its coinage. Both featured the dove, which is sacred to Aphrodite, who had a sanctuary in Kythera. According to mythology, this island was the goddess's birthplace.
