Freud disregards any myths that claim she turned men to stone. Themis was one of the first twelve Titans, direct descendants of Gaea (Mother Earth) and Uranus (Father Sky), the first beings to ever exist in the universe. It was said that anyone who looked directly at her was immediately turned to stone. O Atlas, the oracle said, mark the day a son of Zeus shall come to spoil; for when thy trees been stripped of golden fruit, the glory shall be his. Worried that this son was Perseus, Atlas was always careful. She was a beautiful maiden with golden hair. No human-made weapon could pierce the armor of the great blacksmith, and only a weapon he made himself had a chance the sword of Hephaestus. Heracles was the son of Zeus, the king of the Greek gods, and a mortal woman named Alcmene. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. The French military created a special belt during World War I that had her face on it. It's hard to imagine Zeus misplacing his thunderbolt, as he does as a crucial plot point in "The Lightning Thief", but stranger things have happened in Greek Athena became the goddess of crafts and skilled peacetime pursuits in general. She claimed that Medusa was the only real Gorgon and that her sisters were mere additions to her story. One swipe of the sword and the Gorgon was beheaded, her snake-covered face quickly placed in a bag. Legend says that when invaders attacked the city, Sterope used the hair to bring forth a storm that sent them running away in fear. After Perseus had beheaded Medusa and put her head into his satchel, he used his winged sandals to quickly fly away from the other two vengeful Gorgons. Mythopedia. One version of his battle with Atlas claims that Perseus turned his opponent into a mountain. However, classical and renaissance artists loved depicting the creature being ridden by the better-known hero, so the two myths are often confused. We love art history and writing about it. Corrections? According to Ovid, as Perseus traveled back to Polydectes, he stopped in the lands of Atlas. Webtext Epitome. Yet the Greek economy, unlike that of the Minoans, was largely military, so that Athena, while retaining her earlier domestic functions, became a goddess of war. Beth Seeling took a different approach to the Greek legend. Pindar wrote in 490 BC that she had fair cheeks. Greek mythological hero; son of Zeus and slayer of Medusa. Andromedas mother boasted that she was more beautiful than the Nereids, so Poseidon sent the monster to attack the city. Medusa Legendary Snake Haired Gorgon of Greek Mythology Looking at the forbidden mother stiffens the subject in illicit desire and freezes him in terror of the Fathers retribution. Gorgons, or Gorgones, were three winged daimones, or phantoms of Hades. Called Medousa (Medusa), Sthenmo and Euryale, only Medusa was mortal. While flying over the vast land, Perseus noticed a woman of astonishing beauty standing naked with her hands bound on a rock. After her death, Perseus immediately left to fight Atlas. In almost every version of the Medusa myth, King Polydectes of. She was able to see the future, and because of this, became one of many in a line of Oracles of Delphi (also known as Pythia). Andromeda was said to be an Ethiopian princess. Being the favourite child of Zeus, she had great power. In later artwork, she appears as a more beautiful woman. Eventually, he turned the head of Medusa upon himself and turned to stone. Alcmenes husband, the hero Amphitryon, was from an important family, too, also tracing his lineage to Perseus through his father, Alcaeus. Medusas head was finally given to the goddess Athena, becoming part of the armor she wore into battle. Wilk, Stephen R. Medusa: Solving the Mystery of the Gorgon. She vowed to be celibate her entire life as a priestess of Athena until she fell in love with Poseidon. Greek Mythology is known for its many fearsome beasts such Mantikhoras and Cyclopes. Themis Goddess of Order and Justice Versace still uses a log of a woman with terrifying features and serpents coming from her head as its brand logo. As such, the helmet would have been Hades most important object, and to offer it to Perseus was a great symbol of the underworld gods care for his nephew. Perseus, in Greek mythology, the slayer of the Gorgon Medusa and the rescuer of Andromeda from a sea monster. Perseus was the son of Zeus and Dana, the daughter of Acrisius of Argos. As an infant he was cast into the sea in a chest with his mother by Acrisius, to whom it had been prophesied that he would be killed by his grandson. Leonardo da Vinci did a painting of her using oil on canvas. It came out in 2013 as part of a limited edition series.-Many people use an image of her head because they believe it will protect them from others. Perseus - Baby girl name meaning, origin, and popularity Danaes father, Acrisius, No men are allowed to enter the tower, and the bronze nature of the tower also ensures that its walls cannot be climbed. This creature had a snake on the end of its tail and the body of a dragon. Rather than the father of Perseus, Poseidon is a lover of Medusa, a sea monster who Perseus slew. The Seven Faces of Dr. Lao came out the same year and told the traditional story of Medusa. During the 20th century, many looked at the tale of Medusa and how it relates to feminism. She and her sisters were daughters of the primordial sea gods, Ceto and Phorcys. Legend says this is why so many of the desert areas in that region have so many snakes today. Johnston claimed that it showed men were still frightened of powerful women. Athena removed a lock of the womans hair and gave it to Hercules. 837; Ovid, Metamorphoses 4.653ff. Atlas immediately turned to stone, thus becoming the Atlas Mountains. Modern literary experts also point to the legend as one of the first times in history when men blamed a victim for her rape. When Andromedas former fianc Phineus attacked him, Perseus killed him, too, using Medusas head. Depictions of this Gorgon head were often believed to be apotropaic, meaning they could ward off evil. Pausanias, Description of Greece 8.47.4; Apollodorus, Library 2.7.3. Herodotus found some evidence that she appeared in Berber mythology where she was a major part of their religion. In some stories, it was only then that he went and killed Proteus, but the chronology is different throughout history. 1. If your web page requires an HTML link, please insert this code: Perseus: The Argive Hero of Greek Mythology. WebAthena appears in Homers Odyssey as the tutelary deity of Odysseus, and myths from later sources portray her similarly as helper of Perseus and Heracles (Hercules). For this insult, Perseus showed the severed head of Medusa, and the old Titan turned to stone. More importantly, he was the grandson of Acrisius and Eurydice. According to Pseudo-Apollodorus, the king of the gods became a golden rain and seeped into the cracks of the chamber. Origin: Greek. Athena was customarily portrayed wearing body armour and a helmet and carrying a shield and a lance. 2. Were building the worlds most authoritative, online mythology resource, with engaging, accessible content that is both educational and compelling to read. Athena was probably a pre-Hellenic goddess and was later taken over by the Greeks. Also known as Phorkys, he lay with his sister Ceto. She was associated with birds, particularly the owl, which became famous as the citys own symbol, and with the snake. In Pompeii, a fresco shows an infant Perseus, holding aloft the Gorgons head, and this pose is replicated in statues and artwork around Greece. The bronze tower has a single door at its base, which is guarded day and night, and at the top is a room fit for a princess, and one which Danae effectively finds herself a prisoner in. Aeschylus, for example, in his fifth-century BCE tragedy Prometheus Bound, described them as three winged sisters, the snake-haired Gorgons, loathed of mankind, whom no one of mortal kind shall look upon and still draw breath.[6] It was said that anybody who looked upon Medusa (or her sisters) was immediately turned to stone. Some vases have also been found that depict the story of the golden shower, in which Danae is locked away. Some say that Zeus and Themis created the Three Fates, or the Morai, while others say they already existed and even attended their divine wedding ceremony. In most versions of the story, she was beheaded by the hero Perseus, who was sent to fetch her head by King Polydectes of Seriphus because Polydectes wanted to marry his mother. While the instrument itself was created by Pallas Athene, Pindar says that she wove into music the dire dirge of the reckless Gorgons which Perseus heard and imitate with musical instruments the shrill cry that reached her ears from the fast-moving jaws of Euryale. Yes, the high-pitched notes of the flute were the screams of the Gorgons as they mourned over the death of their sister. With the help of several gods, Perseus tracked Medusa down to her remote lair and beheaded her. Hesiod used her in Theogony. Hercules then went to Tegea and met with Sterope who was the daughter of Cepheus. She also gave birth to Natura, a goddess of the forest. DailyArt Magazine needs your support. Harrison believed that there was some evidence that Medusa was simply one woman and that the stories of her sisters came later. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Library In some traditions, Perseus also met Atlas, the Titan charged with holding up the heavens, during his travels. While Athena, the goddess of women and knowledge, was often portrayed as holding a shield, the story of Perseus is the only surviving account of it being used. Perseus Mythopedia Essentially urban and civilized, Athena was probably a pre-Hellenic goddess later taken over by the Greeks. Returning to the island of Seriphos, the Greek hero discovered his mother in hiding. Phineus, brother of the king and uncle to Andromeda, had been promised the beautiful maiden as his wife. Learn more about our mission. That she ultimately became allegorized to personify wisdom and righteousness was a natural development of her patronage of skill. GREEK NAMES: Female - one.seven design In one version of the Medusa story, she was a gorgeous young woman who agreed to become one of Athenas priestesses. There are several versions of the Medusa myth. The once lovely hair was morphed into poisonous, dangerous snakes. When Ovid wrote her story in Metamopheses, he claimed that she was born beautiful before becoming a snake-haired creature and retained her looks over the years. Perseus as a boy's name is of Greek origin. The qualities that lead to victory are found on the aegis, or breastplate, that Athena wears when she goes to war: fear, strife, defense, and assault. And sometimes, shes holding a scale, a symbol for justice and balance. No, he was sent to kill her by King Polydectes of Seriphos. However, those myths which mention three women call them sisters, and say that the other two were punished simply because of Medusas transgressions. WebPerseus was the son of the Greek god Zeus and the woman Danae. Afterward, locked in a wooden chest, both were thrown into the sea by Danaes father Acrisius, who had known from the She was a monster, a Gorgon, generally described as a winged human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Art Historian, founder and CEO of DailyArtMagazine.com and DailyArt mobile app. Angry at Perseus (instead of the gods that wished her to be sacrificed) he took up arms and started a great fight. Numerous analyses have made us familiar with the occasion for this: it occurs when a boy, who has hitherto been unwilling to believe the threat of castration, catches sight of the female genitals, probably those of an adult, surrounded by hair, and essentially those of his mother. Dohalice, which is a small village in the Czech Republic also uses her head in its coat of arms. Her parents agreed. There Perseus killed the current King, Proteus, and took his place on the throne. However, the same text says that Danaes father, Acrisius, was of Egyptian stock, so Perseus may have been the first Greek in the family through both lines. While her sisters were immortal gods themselves, Medusa was a mortal woman only. Here are just three great ones for you to use. Perseus, upon saving his mother, returned to Argos. Cixous urges women to use this story as a way to take back their own power and escape the control that men have over them. Sign up and get your dose of art history delivered straight to your inbox! There is no evidence that Poseidon was angry about this action, however, and the god appears to play no other role in the story of the Grecian hero. Representing the intellectual and civilized side of war, she is the divine form of the heroic, martial ideal and personifies excellence in close combat, victory, and glory. Early artwork depicted both Medusa and her sisters as gruesome creatures capable of frightening any man. It isnt one hundred percent clear if Perseus was against the worship of Dionysus; mythology texts say that the King of Argos was, but some versions mean Proteus. This was the Golden Age, a time of peace when the Titan Kronos ruled over all others. Many of the women only knew her as a monster and not what she looked like before. 1 According to Hesiod ( Hes. [1] Alcmene was the daughter of Electryon, the king of Mycenae and a son of the hero Perseus. Medusas Head is a study released in 1940 after Freuds death. Pegasus, the famous horse with wings, arose from her dead body. Perseus Facts and Information on the Greek Hero Perseus Atlas attempted to fight but saw her head and turned to stone. The Timeless Myth of Medusa, a Rape Victim Turned Into a Monster Poseidon tempted her into having sexual intercourse with him in a temple to Athena. As she traveled, some of the serpents in her hair fell to the ground and slid away. He owned a giant diamond, the gem made stone in the showers of Zeus, which prevented the magic of Medusas head. The best-known story of Perseus and Dionysus comes from Nonnus, who wrote an entire biography of the bacchic god. Clash of the Titans Polydectes had fallen in love with Danae. In this perspective, the ravishingly beautiful Medusa is the mother remembered in innocence; before the mythic truth of castration dawns on the subject. Today, many surviving bronze shields from ancient antiquity are carved with the Gorgons head as a warning for all who face the wielder. Perseus was assisted by the gods, who provided him with a mirrored shield, winged sandals, a helmet of invisibility, an adamantine sword, and a magical satchel that could carry Medusas head. In 1782, Leonardo da Vincis biographer Luigi Lanzi discovered a depiction of Medusas head which he erroneously attributed to Leonardo, based on a description of Leonardos painting done by Giorgio Vasari. The myth of Perseus slaying of Medusa is also described in the Shield of Heracles (220ff). Though some point to the version of the story where Athena came across Medusa in her temple, others claim that the legend never says whether she willingly agreed to intercourse with Poseidon. According to the best-known traditions, the Hesperides were daughters of the Titan Atlas. Seeing claims that Athena saw Medusa in her temple and instead of catching her in the midst of consensual intercourse, she found Poseidon raping her. Separated from her sisters and unable to find love, Medusa wandered through the African desert. Legend claims the was a giant who carried a golden sword. In his eyes, Medusa was only scary because it linked castration to something that a man could see. The Death of Medusa I by Edward Burne-Jones (1882). Medusa was killed by the hero Perseus, a son of Zeus and the mortal Argive princess Danae. Andromeda had been left chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster. Thence, by Athenas curse anyone she looked upon turned to stone. Both Proetus and Megapenthes were King of Argos, and Magapenthes was the cousin of Danae. But the young Medusa offended Athena and was therefore cursed to be a terrible monster, forever hunted by men. Medusa grew wings, tusks, and long claws. Medusa, the daughter of the sea gods Phorcys and Ceto, was the most feared of the Gorgons. The Artist Behind a (Very Questionable) Nude Public Statue of According to Athenaeus, a Greek author who lived during the late second and early third centuries CE, the Gorgons were long-haired beasts, so terrifying that all who looked upon them were paralyzed and killed. She was someone who would kill anyone who saw her, and the snakes were simply the curly and knotted hair that was naturally on her head. By the fifth century BCE, however, Medusa and the Gorgons were increasingly depicted as beautiful women in the visual arts as in literature.[8]. When Perseus sought a place to rest, Atlas refused him. Lucan: The epic Civil War (60s CE) describes how the venomous vipers of the Sahara were born from Medusas blood (9.624ff). She wanted to show the Gorgons head in a different way. While it was Zeus that fathered Helen and Pollux by sleeping with Leda while in the form of a Swan, Tyndareus was considered their mortal father. Perseus was quite protective of his mother, with all they had been through, and was cautious about the King. This root also appears in other Greek names, including Medea, Medon, and Diomedes. Many later versions of the myth claimed that she was once a beautiful Many mythical features are assigned to Perseus within the ancient Greek legends, like the famous winged shoes of Hermes which allowed him to fly and the The best-known story of Perseus and Dionysus comes from Nonnus, who wrote an entire biography of the bacchic god. The director chose to show her as a human woman who only turned terrifying once men looked into her eyes. There are also references to Medusa in the Fabulae. The chief characters in the Perseus legend, Perseus, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda, and the sea monster (Cetus), all figure in the night sky as constellations. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn. The fields of Atlas contained the golden fruit, some of which the old Titan had previously given to Heracles. Athena is associated with birds, particularly the owl, which became famous as the symbol of the city of Athens. To make Athena look better, some stories claim that Perseus never gave her Medusas head. Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound 798800, trans. Also in more modern art, the subject of Medusas head became quite popular. Priestesses took a vow of chastity and devoted their lives to her. After their wedding, he headed to Seriphos for his mothers wedding. All stories of Medusa sprang from this event. For standing by their sibling, she did the same to the other two gorgons. She was thought to have had neither consort nor offspring. Born centuries after the first appearance of Medusa, Freud later used her in his psychoanalysis. 4 (Zurich: Artemis, 1988), 288345. This shows that the island has protection from Athena. She claimed that Medusa was the ultimate guardian and protectress of women. This he gave to Perseus, and it was only ever used once. This interpretation goes on to say that the Three Fates were actually born with Themis in the sea and that they traveled with her to Mount Olympus to meet Zeus. Zeus. Perseus - Baby Name Meaning, Origin, and Popularity The goddess carried the womans head on her shield. She was the daughter of Zeus, produced without a mother, so that she emerged full-grown from his forehead. Joseph Campbell was one historian who believed this theory. One was the Giant Chrysaor, who became the father of the monster Geryon. The most famous story of Perseus is his quest to kill the famous monster, Medusa. Her name in Ancient Greek means guardian, protectress. Disappointed by his lack of luck in having a son, Acrisius consulted the Oracle at Delphi, who warned him that he would one day be killed by his daughter's son. The Roman version of her story is the same but changes the location to Minervas temple and her partner to Neptune. Andromeda: The Legendary Princess Of Greek Mythology Perseus made a deal if he dealt with the monster, Andromeda would become his wife. Perseus - Wikipedia Priestesses took a vow of chastity and devoted their The name Perseus is boy's name of Greek origin meaning "to destroy". There, he married Andromeda, and she would live to old age, giving Perseus many children. Elizabeth Johnston released an essay in 2016 where she talked about how men used the legend as a way to disparage Hillary Clinton as she ran for President. He would become a Greek, rather than be born one. In Libya, he used Medusas head to kill the monster Cetus and save Andromeda, who became his wife. Many artists made Medusa into a work of art. Caravaggio, Medusa, 1595-1596, Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy. During the height of the #metoo movement, many women began using images of Medusa. In book 47 of the text, Perseus kills Ariadne by turning her into stone, while a disguised Hera warns the hero that, to win, he would also need to kill all the Satyrs. Accessed April 4, 2021. http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0104%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DG%3Aentry+group%3D9%3Aentry%3Dgorgo-bio-1. The flag and emblem of Sicily also features her head. WebDetermined to have a work from his hand, the countess negotiated a contract, signed by Canova on April 14, 1804, for a version of the artists marble Perseus with the Head of Medusa (17971801). Perseus | Encyclopedia.com document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Gods of Death Heracles Apollonius of Rhodes Argonautica 4.828ff; Eustathius on Homers Odyssey 12.85; scholia on Apollonius of Rhodes Argonautica 4.828; scholia on Platos Republic 9, 588c. Meaning: Destroyer. Athenas moral and military superiority to Ares derives in part from the fact that she represents the intellectual and civilized side of war and the virtues of justice and skill, whereas Ares represents mere blood lust. She personified, or represented, fairness, the laws of the gods, the laws of human nature, the laws made by man and customs (or tradition). She was usually represented as a winged female creature having a head of hair consisting of snakes; unlike the Gorgons, she was sometimes represented as very beautiful. Garber, Marjorie, and Nancy Vickers. He stabbed it multiple times, in the neck and back, and attacked every time the creature rose to the surface. This series is often compared to the British Harry Potter series, and the first book was adapted into a film in 2010.
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