Medusa headpiece5/21/2023 Perseus also encountered Andromeda, the daughter of the Aethiopian king Cepheus and his wife Cassiopeia. Knowing that he would not be able to defeat the Titan with brute force alone, he took out Medusa’s head and Atlas was turned into a mountain. When Perseus asked Atlas for a place to rest for a short while, his request was refused. The power of Medusa’s head is seen again when Perseus encountered the Titan Atlas. When the blood dripped from Medusa’s head onto the plains of Libya, each drop of blood transformed into venomous serpents. ( Public Domain ) The Powers of Medusa’s Head ![]() ‘The Perseus Series: The Death of Medusa I’ by Edward Burne-Jones. Although Perseus may be at the center of these stories, it could be argued that it is the transformative powers of Medusa’s severed head that played a pivotal role in the hero’s subsequent adventures. But he had several other exciting events before returning to the island. Some versions of the myth say he took Pegasus with him as well.Īfter this, Perseus flew away via Hermes’ sandals or Pegasus, setting course for Seriphus. But the hero escaped by using the Cap of Invisibility. Medusa’s sisters also arrived on the scene around the same time and chased Perseus. In the Theogony, Hesiod also mentions that the golden giant Chrysaor, who was born with a golden sword in his hand, emerged from the severed neck of Medusa. Immediately after the Gorgon was beheaded, the winged horse Pegasus sprung out from her neck. ![]() With these divine gifts, Perseus sought out Medusa and decapitated her with the bronze shield while she was asleep. Perseus received the Cap of Invisibility from Hades, a pair of winged sandals from Hermes, a reflective bronze shield from Athena, and a sword from Hephaestus. Such a mission would have been equivalent to suicide for Perseus and Polydectes did not expect him to ever return to Seriphus.Īs Perseus was the son of Zeus, he was aided by the gods. ![]() This was a trick because Polydectes desired Perseus’ mother and wanted to get rid of her son, who was not in favor of the relationship. In the myth of Perseus, the hero is sent by Polydectes, Dictys’ brother and the king of Seriphus, on a quest to bring him the head of Medusa. However, there were others close by who weren’t so kind to the boy. Acrisius feared the child, but wanted to avoid Zeus’ wrath, so instead of killing Perseus, he sent the baby and Danae out to sea in a wooden chest.ĭictys of the island of Seriphus rescued the two and he raised Perseus like a son. The god had impregnated the princess in the form of a shower of gold after her father had locked her away upon learning from an oracle that he would be killed by his grandson. Perseus was the son of Danae, daughter of Acrisius the King of Argos, and Zeus. The full myth of Perseus and Medusa begins years before they battled. Some other variations of the myth suggest that Medusa and the other Gorgons were always hideous monsters and covered with snakes. “In the middle is the Gorgon Medusa, an enormous monster about whom snaky locks twist their hissing mouths her eyes stare malevolently, and under the base of her chin the tail-ends of serpents have tied knots.” To a monstrous being which Virgil writes of in a far less attractive manner: When Athena discovered the sea god had ravaged Medusa in her shrine she sought vengeance by transforming Medusa’s hair into snakes, so that anyone who gazed at her directly would be turned into stone.Īncient Origins - Medusa and the Gorgons: The Origins of the Legendary Tale ![]() Her beauty caught the eye of Poseidon, who desired her and proceeded to ravage her in Athena’s shrine. In this work, Ovid describes Medusa as originally being a beautiful maiden. By contrast, a more comprehensive account of Perseus and Medusa can be found in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Why Did Medusa Get Cursed?Īlthough Hesiod gives an account of Medusa’s origins and the death of Medusa at the hands of Perseus, he does not say more about her. But she is also the most famous and the myth of her demise at the hands of Perseus is often recounted. Of the three, only Medusa is said to be mortal. According to this ancient author, the three sisters, Sthenno, Euryale, and Medusa, were the children of Phorcys and Ceto and lived “beyond famed Oceanus at the world’s edge hard by Night”. In ancient Greek mythology, Medusa is the most famous of three monstrous sisters known as the Gorgons. The earliest known record about the story of Medusa and the Gorgons can be found in Hesiod’s Theogony.
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