Eros

Greek God of Love

Eros was the Greek god of love and desire, but he did not always look like the tiny winged Cupid we know today. In one of the oldest Greek creation stories, Eros appears near the beginning of the universe as a great power that helps attraction and life begin. Later stories make him much younger and usually connect him with Aphrodite, often as her son. Ares is sometimes named as his father. Ancient artists could show Eros as a handsome winged young man. Over time he became younger, smaller and more playful until the familiar little winged archer appeared.

Eros’s most famous objects are his bow and arrows. When he shoots someone, love can arrive suddenly and completely ruin whatever sensible plan they had five seconds earlier. Later writers described different arrows that could create love or make somebody reject it. Gods were not safe from Eros either. That is part of the joke. He might be tiny, but enormous and powerful gods could still find themselves doing ridiculous things because of one little arrow. Eros was sometimes shown with other winged love gods called Erotes, so not every small winged figure in ancient art is necessarily Eros himself.

The most famous story about Eros today is the tale of Eros and Psyche, although the fullest version survives from a later Roman writer who calls him Cupid. Psyche is a beautiful mortal princess, and Cupid secretly falls in love with her. He visits her at night but tells her she must never look at him. When Psyche breaks the rule, they are separated and she must complete a series of difficult tasks before they can be reunited. Eventually she becomes immortal and they marry. The Romans called Eros Cupid, and later art turned him into the cheerful Valentine character we still recognise. I think the ancient version is much more fun. Eros may be cute, but nobody should underestimate someone carrying magical arrows that can make even the gods forget all common sense.

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