There are two varied accounts of Ares' birth. According to Hesiod and most other poets, Ares was born naturally to Zeus and Hera. Ovid, however, tell the story differently. In his poem the Fasti, Ares was born fatherless to Hera. In rage with Zeus for fathering yet another child (Athena) with another woman, Hera confided in with her servant, the goddess of flowers Chloris. The flower goddess advised Hera to go to her field and pluck a specific flower. Hera did so and quickly bore a child, Ares.
In Greece itself the worship of Ares was not very general. At Athens he had a temple containing a statue made by Alcamenes; at Geronthrae in Laconia he had a temple with a grove, where an annual festival was celebrated, during which no woman was allowed to approach the temple. He was also worshipped near Tegea, and in the town, at Olympia , near Thebes, and at Sparta, where there was an ancient statue, representing the god in chains, to indicate that the martial spirit and victory were never to leave the city of Sparta. At Sparta human sacrifices were offered to Ares. The temples of this god were usually built outside the towns, probably to suggest the idea that he was to prevent enemies from approaching them.
All the stories about Ares and his worship in the countries north of Greece seem to indicate that his worship was introduced in the latter country from Thrace; and the whole character of the god, as described by the most ancient poets of Greece, seems to have been thought little suited to be represented in works of art : in fact, we hear of no artistic representation of Ares previous to the time of Alcamenes, who appears to have created the ideal of Ares. There are few Greek monuments now extant with representations of the god; he appears principally on coins, reliefs, and gems. The Romans identified their god Mars with the Greek Ares.
Ares did not have any particular oracle which catered to him. At times, he shared with Zeus his oracle at Dodona, and Apollo his oracle at Delphos.
