Apulian Gnathian skyphos

The goddess of love was often depicted in the form of a dove, as on the lip of this deep drinking cup, where it faces a female head. Doves, with their feet tied to a perch so they could not fly away, were given to women as love-gifts in the ancient world.

Doves also feature in a myth that begins with a flower-picking competition between Aphrodite and Eros. When it appeared that Eros was winning, a nymph named Peristera – meaning dove or pigeon – helped the goddess to victory. Eros was so annoyed he turned the nymph into a dove. Characterised by their soft cooing and amorous behaviour, doves became temple birds in Greece and were believed to be faithful lovers or messengers of love.