Hera (Juno in to the Romans) was not only Zeus’s wife, but also his sister.
She was very beautiful and, when Zeus became king of the gods, he decided to marry her. In
honour of her wedding to Zeus a wondrous tree, with apples of gold, grew form the earth.
These apples were known as the apples of the Hesperides. Hera was the Queen of Heaven, as
well as the patroness of all marriages. She held the cow, the peacock and the cuckoo
sacred and her chariot, sandals and throne were all gold. Hera was a proud goddess who was
revengeful and jealous of Zeus’s many affairs. She often tried to hurt anyone, mortal
or divine, who attracted too much of his attention. The Greeks at Argos, Sparta, and
Mycenae especially honoured her. She had three children: Ares (Mars), Hebe and
Hephaestus (Vulcan).