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Apple of concord: a Greek cake for autumn

Apple of concord: a Greek cake for autumn

We've always thought of apples as the quintessential New England fruit brought from Old England. But apples lie at the heart of some of the best of the ancient Greek stories. Gods and humans alike coveted the golden apples that Gaia presented to Hera and Zeus as a wedding present. They were said to confer immortality and promised immunity to hunger, thirst, and illness. To cause trouble, the goddess of discord (Eris) stole an apple, inscribed it ‶to the fairest,″ and lobbed the Apple of Discord into the wedding crowd. Goddesses scrambled for it, arguing to whom it should belong. Paris was drafted to decide. In the Judgment of Paris, he awarded it to Aphrodite, who in turn awarded him Helen of Troy. Cue the...Read More