The harbour at Paphos on the Greek island of Crete. It was here that Aphrodite went for a little pampering after her humiliating experience, and you can see why.
SO very desirable was Aphrodite, that to bring peace to Olympus Zeus ordered her to marry Hephaestus, the lame and ugly blacksmith of the gods. But the peace was soon broken, for Helios, the sun-god, saw Aphrodite kissing Ares, god of war. He told Hephaestus, who stomped off to his workshop to brood.
At length, Hephaestus fashioned a cunning net so fine it could not be seen, yet so strong it could not be broken. He draped it about his marriage bed, and left for Lemnos, his favourite haunt. Ares watched him go, then slipped indoors to Aphrodite. They giggled their way into bed, and were instantly snared in Hephaestus’s net.
Hephaestus went with gloomy satisfaction to Zeus, to demand compensation for his wife’s proven infidelities. The other gods laughed till they cried. Hermes and Apollo offered to swap places with Ares, net or no net.
At last, Poseidon agreed to compensate the blacksmith for his injured pride, and a humiliated Aphrodite swept off to Paphos on Cyprus, to be pampered by the Graces.
Précis
Aphrodite, not pleased to be married off to the ugly blacksmith Hephaestus, had an affair with mighty Ares. Smarting at the humiliation, Hephaestus used his skill to craft a fine net to catch the lovers in the act. When the other gods had finished laughing, Poseidon reluctantly offered compensation, and the aggrieved husband let the lovers go. (57 / 60 words)
