Helen of Troy is the figure from classical mythology whose face was said to have "launched a thousand ships" - a line from Christopher Marlowe's play Doctor Faustus (1604). This refers to the Trojan War, which was fought over Helen's abduction from her husband Menelaus, leading to the launch of a thousand Greek ships to rescue her. Medusa, Cleopatra, and Hera are all significant female figures but not associated with this famous literary phrase.