In respectful terms--for he suspected she was some divinity in disguise--Aeneas begged for information and learned he has landed in the realm of Dido.

Warned in a vision that her brother had secretly slain her husband and was plotting against her life, this Tyrian queen had fled from Tyre with friends and wealth, and, on reaching this part of Africa, had, thanks to the clever device of a bull's hide, obtained land enough to found the city of Byrsa or Carthage.

In return Aeneas gave the strange huntress his name, relating how the storm had scattered all his vessels save the seven anchored close by.

To allay his anxiety in regard to his friends, Venus assured him that twelve swans flying overhead were omens of the safety of his ships, and it was only when she turned to leave him that Aeneas recognized his mother, who, notwithstanding his desire to embrace her, promptly disappeared.
The two Trojans now walked on in the direction she indicated until dazzled by the beauty of the new city of Carthage, which was rising rapidly, thanks to the activity of Dido's subjects.

In its centre stood a wonderful temple, whose brazen gates were decorated with scenes from the War of Troy.