Venus: Roman Goddess of Love
维纳斯：罗马的爱之女神**
Venus, according to Roman mythology, was the goddess of love, sex, beauty, and fertility. She was the Roman counterpart to the Greek Aphrodite.
在罗马神话中，维纳斯是掌管爱情、性、美丽和生育的女神。她是希腊女神阿佛洛狄忒在罗马神话中的对应者。
However, Roman Venus had many abilities beyond the Greek Aphrodite. She was a goddess of victory, fertility, and even prostitution. In myth Venus Aphrodite was born of sea-foam and countless artworks depict Venus rising from the sea in a clam.
然而，罗马的维纳斯拥有比希腊阿佛洛狄忒更多的职能。她不仅是胜利与多产的女神，甚至也与娼妓有关。在神话中，维纳斯/阿佛洛狄忒由海浪泡沫诞生，许多艺术作品都描绘她从海中贝壳里升起的场景。
**Venus Lovers and Children and Descendants
维纳斯的情人、子女与后裔**
Venus had two main divine lovers, her husband Vulcan and Mars. There is a myth concerning Venus’ and Mars’ love affair and how Vulcan cunningly trapped them in bed with a net. Therefore, Vulcan and Venus had a loveless marriage and no children.
维纳斯最主要的两位神祇情人是她的丈夫伏尔坎（火神）和战神玛尔斯。神话中提到，维纳斯与玛尔斯的婚外情被伏尔坎用巧妙的陷阱抓到，他用网将二人困在床上。因此，伏尔坎与维纳斯的婚姻缺乏爱情，也没有子女。
The goddess of love and sex was not barren. She had many children from different gods. Venus had several mortal lovers as well. The two most famous would be Anchises and Adonis but she was also the lover of the Sicilian king Butes and Paethon.
作为爱情与性爱之女神，维纳斯并不不育。她与许多神祇都有子女。维纳斯也有多位凡人情人，其中最著名的是安喀塞斯与阿多尼斯，她还曾与西西里国王布忒斯和帕厄通有过关系。
In Roman mythology she was the ancestor of the Roman people through her son, Aeneas, who survived the fall of Troy and fled to Italy. Julius Caesar claimed her as his ancestor. Venus was central to many religious festivals and was revered in Roman religion under numerous cult titles.
在罗马神话中，她通过自己的儿子埃涅阿斯成为罗马民族的祖先。埃涅阿斯在特洛伊陷落后幸存并逃往意大利。尤利乌斯·凯撒也声称自己是维纳斯的后裔。维纳斯在许多宗教节日中扮演重要角色，并以多种称号受到罗马人的崇拜。
**Temples and Cults in Ancient Rome
古罗马的维纳斯神庙与崇拜**
According to some historians, the first appearance of a temple to Venus was in 295 BCE. It was to Venus Obsequens (Obedient Venus) on the Aventine Hill by Q. Fabius Gurges.
据部分历史学者所述，最早的维纳斯神庙出现于公元前 295 年。它由 Q. 法比乌斯·古尔杰斯在阿文丁山为“顺从的维纳斯”所建。
However, this temple was diffused with Greek aspects (Aphrodite’s cults) and was not a new creation. In 217 BCE, the Sibyline oracle suggested that if Rome could persuade Venus Erycina (Venus of Eryx) to change her allegiance from the Carthaginian Sicilian allies to the Romans, the war would be won.
然而，这座神庙带有大量希腊阿佛洛狄忒崇拜的元素，并非完全新的创造。公元前 217 年，西比林神谕指出，如果罗马能说服埃律克斯的维纳斯从迦太基的西西里盟友转而支持罗马，战争将会获胜。
Rome laid siege to Eryx, offered the goddess a magnificent temple and took her image back to Rome. It was this foreign image that eventually became Rome’s Venus Genetrix (Venus the Mother).
罗马随即包围了埃律克斯，为女神建造了一座宏伟神庙，并将她的神像带回罗马。正是这尊外来的神像，最终成为罗马的“始祖维纳斯”。
The cult forming around Venus Genetrix on the Capitoline Hill was reserved for the higher classes, but in 181 BCE and 114 BCE the temples and cults of Venus Erycina and Venus Verticordia (Venus the changer of hearts) were established for the plebeians.
在卡比托利欧山围绕“始祖维纳斯”形成的崇拜主要属于上层阶级；但在公元前 181 年和前 114 年，为平民设立了埃律克斯·维纳斯与“心灵转变者维纳斯”的神庙与崇拜。
**Festivals on Venus in Ancient Rome
古罗马的维纳斯节日**
Venus’ month was April, the beginning of spring and fertility, when most of her festivals were held. On the first of April a festival was held in honour of Venus Verticordia called Veneralia.
四月是维纳斯的月份，它象征春天与生育的开始，因此大多数节日都在此月举行。4 月 1 日，为纪念“心灵转变者维纳斯”而举办维纳里亚节。
On the 23rd, Vinalia Urbana was held which was a wine festival belonging to both Venus and Jupiter. Vinalia Rusticia was held in August. It was Venus’ oldest festival and associated with her form as Venus Obsequens.
4 月 23 日会举行“城市酒节”，这是属于维纳斯与朱庇特共同的酒神节。8 月举办“乡村酒节”，这是维纳斯最古老的节日，与“顺从的维纳斯”形象相关。
The festival of Venus Genetrix, the mother and protector of Rome, was celebrated in September.
九月则庆祝“始祖维纳斯”节日，她被视为罗马的母亲与守护者。
Images of Venus
维纳斯的形象**
Images of Venus have been found in countless forms from sculptures to mosaics to shrines and even domestic murals. Venus, due to her natural beauty and sexual nature, was depicted nude.
维纳斯的形象以雕塑、马赛克、祭祀小像甚至家居壁画等无数形式出现。由于她天生的美丽与性感，她常以裸体形象被描绘。
Most sculptures of Venus resembled a close similarity to the Aphrodite of Cnidus. However, there are many fine wall paintings from Pompeii that depict Venus in different forms.
大多数维纳斯雕像都与克尼多斯的阿佛洛狄忒相似。然而，庞贝城也发现许多描绘维纳斯不同形象的精美壁画。
Venus continued to be a popular subject matter for artists through antiquity and the Renaissance even into the 20th century CE.
从古代到文艺复兴时期再到 20 世纪，维纳斯一直是艺术家热衷表现的主题。
