Editing Perseus (section)

== Mythology ==

===The Birth of Perseus===

King [[Acrisius]] of [[Ancient Argos|Argos]] had only one child, a daughter named [[Danaë]]. Disappointed by not having a male heir, Acrisius consulted the [[Delphi|Oracle at Delphi]], who warned him that he would one day be killed by his own grandson. To keep Danaë childless, Acrisius imprisoned her in a room atop a bronze tower in the courtyard of his palace:{{efn|"Even thus endured Danaë in her beauty to change the light of day for brass-bound walls; and in that chamber, secret as the grave, she was held close".<ref>{{cite book |author=[[Sophocles]] |title=[[Antigone (Sophocles)|Antigone]] |type=stage play}}</ref> In post-Renaissance paintings the setting is often a locked tower.}} This [[mytheme]] is also connected to [[Ares]], [[Oenopion]], [[Eurystheus]], and others. [[Zeus]] came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and fathered her child.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Trzaskoma |first1=Stephen |display-authors=etal |year=2004 |title=Anthology of Classical Myth: Primary sources in translation |publisher=Hackett |place=Indianapolis, IN |isbn=978-0-87220-721-9}}</ref> Soon after, their child, a son, was born; Perseus-"Perseus Eurymedon,{{efn|''Eurymedon'': "far-ruling"}} for his mother gave him this name as well".<ref>[[Apollonius of Rhodes]], ''[[Argonautica]]'' [https://topostext.org/work/126#4.1502 4.1514]</ref>

Fearful for his future, but unwilling to provoke the wrath of the gods and the [[Erinyes]] by killing the offspring of Zeus and his daughter, Acrisius cast the two into the sea in a wooden chest.<ref>For the familiar motif of the [[Exposed Child]] in the account of [[Moses]] especially, see {{cite journal |last=Childs |first=Brevard S. |author-link=Brevard S. Childs |year=1965 |title=The birth of Moses |journal=Journal of Biblical Literature |volume=84 |issue=2 |pages=109–122 |doi=10.2307/3264132 |jstor=3264132}} or {{cite journal |last=Redford |first=Donald B. |year=1967 |title=The literary motif of the exposed child (cf. Ex. ii 1–10) |journal=Numen |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=209–228 |doi=10.2307/3269606|jstor=3269606 }} Another example of this mytheme is the Indian figure of [[Karna]].</ref> Danaë's fearful prayer, made while afloat in the darkness, has been expressed by the poet [[Simonides of Ceos]]. Mother and child washed ashore on the island of [[Serifos|Seriphos]], where they were taken in by the fisherman [[Dictys]] ("fishing net"), who raised the boy to manhood. The brother of Dictys was [[Polydectes]] ("he who receives/welcomes many"), the king of the island.[[File:Persus-with-the-head-of-med.jpg|thumb|left|200px|''Perseo trionfante'' by Antonio Canova (1801) [[Musei Vaticani]], [[Rome]]]]

===A Horrifying Wedding Gift===

When Perseus was growing up on the island of [[Serifos|Seriphus]],<ref name = britannica/> Polydectes came to lust for the beautiful Danaë. Perseus believed Polydectes was less than honorable, and protected his mother from him; then Polydectes plotted to send Perseus away in disgrace. He held a large banquet where each guest was expected to bring a gift.{{efn|Such a banquet, to which each guest brings a gift, was an ''eranos''. The name of ''Polydectes'', "receiver of many", characterizes his role as intended host but is also a [[euphemism]] for the Lord of the Underworld, as in {{cite book |title=[[Homeric Hymn|Homeric Hymns]] |chapter=Hymn to Demeter |at=9, 17}} }} Polydectes requested that the guests bring horses, under the pretense that he was collecting contributions for the hand of [[Hippodamia (daughter of Oenomaus)|Hippodamia]], daughter of Oinomaos. Perseus had no horse to give, so he asked Polydectes to name the gift; he would not refuse it. Polydectes held Perseus to his [[rash promise]] and demanded the snake-haired [[Medusa]]'s head.

===Overcoming Medusa===

Medusa and her two immortal older sisters, [[Stheno and Euryale]], were [[Gorgon]]s, monsters with snakes for hair, sharp [[fang]]s and [[claw]]s, [[wing]]s of [[Gold (color)|gold]], and [[Petrifaction in mythology and fiction|gazes that turned people to stone]].

Before setting out on his quest, Perseus [[Prayer|prayed]] to the gods and Zeus answered by sending two of his other children – [[Hermes]] and [[Athena]] – to bless their half-brother with the weapons needed to defeat Medusa. Hermes gave Perseus his own pair of [[Talaria|winged sandals]] to fly with and lent him his [[Harpe|harpe sword]] to slay Medusa with, and [[Hades]]'s [[Cap of invisibility|helm of darkness]] to become invisible with. Athena lent Perseus her polished shield for him to view Medusa's reflection without becoming petrified, and gave him a ''kibisis'', a knapsack to safely contain the Gorgon's head which the goddess warned could still petrify even in death. Lastly, Athena instructed Perseus to seek out the [[Graeae]], the Gorgons' sisters, for the snake-haired women's whereabouts (in other versions, it was the [[Hesperides|Hesperides nymphs]] who gave Perseus the weapons after he sought out the Graeae).

Following Athena's guidance, Perseus found the Graeae, who were three old [[swan]]-shaped [[Witchcraft|witches]] sharing a single eye and a single tooth. As the witches passed their eye from one to another, Perseus snatched it from them, holding it for ransom in return for the Gorgons' location. The Graeae informed Perseus that the Gorgons lived on the Island of Sarpedon. Perseus then gave the Graeae their eye back and proceeded to the island.

On the Island of Sarpedon, Perseus came across a cave where Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa lay sleeping. Using Athena's reflective shield, Perseus overcame the [[looking taboo]] by looking at her reflection on the shield to guide himself.<ref name = britannica/>He then walked into the cave backwards, safely observing and approaching the sleeping Gorgons. With Athena guiding the sword, Perseus [[Decapitation|beheaded]] Medusa. From Medusa's neck sprang her two children with [[Poseidon]]: the [[winged horse]] [[Pegasus]] ("he who sprang") and the [[Giants (Greek mythology)|giant]] [[Chrysaor]] ("sword of gold"). To avenge their sister's death, Stheno and Euryale flew after Perseus, but he escaped them by wearing Hades's invisibility helm.<ref>[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Apollodorus]], [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2..4.3&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.4.3]</ref> From here he proceeded to visit [[Atlas (mythology)#King of Mauretania|King Atlas]] who had refused him hospitality; in revenge Perseus petrified him with Medusa's head and King Atlas became the [[Atlas Mountains|Atlas mountains]].<ref>{{cite book |first=William |last=Godwin |year=1876 |title=Lives of the Necromancers |page=39 |url=https://archive.org/details/livesnecromance04godwgoog |via=Archive.org}}</ref>

===Marriage to Andromeda===

On the way back to Seriphos, Perseus stopped in the kingdom of [[Aethiopia]]. This mythical Ethiopia was ruled by King [[Cepheus (father of Andromeda)|Cepheus]] and Queen [[Cassiopeia (mother of Andromeda)|Cassiopeia]]. Cassiopeia, having boasted that her daughter [[Andromeda (mythology)|Andromeda]] was more beautiful than the [[Nereid]]s, drew the vengeance of Poseidon, who sent an inundation on the land and a sea serpent, [[Cetus (mythology)|Cetus]], which destroyed man and beast. The [[Siwa Oasis|oracle of Ammon]] announced that no relief would be found until the king sacrificed his daughter, Andromeda, to the monster, and so she was fastened to a rock on the shore. Wearing the winged sandals given to him by Hermes, Perseus reached Andromeda and used the harpe to behead the monster (in other versions, Perseus used Medusa's head to petrify Cetus).<ref name = britannica/> By rescuing Andromeda, Perseus claimed her in marriage.

[[File:Perseus and andromeda amphora.jpg|thumb|right|Perseus rescuing Andromeda from Cetus, depicted on an [[amphora]] in the [[Altes Museum]], Berlin]]

Perseus married Andromeda in spite of [[Phineus (son of Belus)|Phineus]], to whom she had been previously engaged. At the wedding, a quarrel took place between the rivals, and Phineus was [[Petrifaction in mythology and fiction|petrified]] by the sight of Medusa's head.<ref>[[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses]]'' [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Ov.+Met.+5&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0028:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 5.1–235]</ref> Andromeda ("queen of men") followed her husband to [[Tiryns]] in [[Ancient Argos|Argos]], and became the ancestress of the family of the [[Perseidae]] who ruled at [[Tiryns]] through her son with Perseus, [[Perses (son of Andromeda and Perseus)|Perses]].{{efn|Perseus and Andromeda descendants (the [[Perseids (mythology)|Perseids]]) include seven sons: [[Perses (son of Andromeda and Perseus)|Perses]], [[Alcaeus (mythology)|Alcaeus]], [[Heleus]], [[Mestor]], [[Sthenelus (son of Andromeda and Perseus)|Sthenelus]], [[Electryon]], and [[Cynurus]], and one daughter, [[Gorgophone]]. Their descendants also ruled Mycenae, from [[Electryon]] to [[Eurystheus]], after whom [[Atreus]] attained the kingdom. Among the Perseids was the great hero [[Heracles]]. According to this mythology, Perseus is the ancestor of the [[Persian people|Persians]].}} After her death she was placed by Athena among the constellations in the northern sky, near Perseus and Cassiopeia.{{efn|See article ''[[Catasterismi]]''.}} [[Sophocles]] and [[Euripides]] (and in more modern times [[Pierre Corneille]]) made the episode of Perseus and Andromeda the subject of tragedies, and its incidents were represented in many ancient works of art.

As Perseus was flying in his return above the sands of [[Libya (mythology)|Libya]], according to [[Apollonius of Rhodes]],<ref>Apollonius of Rhodes, ''Argonautica'' [https://topostext.org/work/126#4.1502 4.1505 ff.]</ref> the falling drops of Medusa's blood created a race of toxic serpents, one of whom was to kill the Argonaut [[Mopsus]]. Upon returning to Seriphos and discovering that his mother had to take refuge from the violent advances of Polydectes, Perseus killed him with Medusa's head, and made Dictys the new king of Seriphos.

[[File:Perseus and Andromeda MAN Napoli Inv8995.jpg|thumb|Perseus and Andromeda, 1st century AD fresco from the Casa della Saffo, [[Pompeii]]]]

===Prophecy fulfilled===
Perseus then returned his magical loans and gave Medusa's head as a [[Votive offering|votive gift]] to Athena, who set it on her [[aegis]] (which Zeus gave her) as the ''[[Gorgoneion]]''. The fulfillment of the oracle was told several ways, each incorporating the mythic theme of exile. In [[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]]<ref>[[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]], [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.16.2&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.16.2]</ref> he did not return to Argos, but went instead to [[Larissa]], where athletic games were being held. He had just invented the [[Quoits|quoit]] and was making a public display of them when Acrisius, who happened to be visiting, stepped into the trajectory of the quoit and was killed: thus the oracle was fulfilled. This is an unusual variant on the story of such a prophecy, as Acrisius's actions did not, in this variant, cause his death.

In the ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]'',<ref>Apollodorus, [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2.4.4&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0022:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.4.4]</ref> the inevitable occurred by another route: Perseus did return to Argos, but when Acrisius learned of his grandson's approach, mindful of the oracle he went into voluntary exile in [[Pelasgians|Pelasgiotis]] ([[Thessaly]]). There Teutamides, king of [[Larissa]], was holding [[funeral games]] for his father. Competing in the discus throw, Perseus's throw veered-and struck Acrisius, killing him instantly. In a third tradition,<ref>Ovid, ''Metamorphoses'' [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Ov.+Met.+5.177&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0028:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 5.177]</ref> Acrisius had been driven into exile by his brother [[Proetus]]. Perseus petrified the brother with Medusa's head and restored Acrisius to the throne. Then, accused by Acrisius of lying about having slain Medusa, Perseus proves himself by showing Acrisius the Gorgon's head, thus fulfilling the prophecy.

Having killed Acrisius, Perseus, who was next in line for the throne, gave the kingdom to [[Megapenthes (son of Proetus)|Megapenthes]] ("great mourning"), son of [[Proetus]], and took over Megapenthes's kingdom of [[Tiryns]]. The story is related in Pausanias,<ref>Pausanias, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.16.3&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.16.3]</ref> who gives as motivation for the swap that Perseus was ashamed to have become king of Argos by inflicting death. In any case, early Greek literature reiterates that manslaughter, even involuntary, requires the exile of the slaughterer, expiation and ritual purification. The exchange might well have proved a creative solution to a difficult problem.

===King of Mycenae===
[[File:Piero di Cosimo - Liberazione di Andromeda - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|300px|[[Perseus Freeing Andromeda]] by [[Piero di Cosimo]] ({{c.|1515}}) – [[Uffizi]]]]

The two main sources regarding the legendary life of Perseus—for the Greeks considered him an authentic historical figure—are Pausanias and the ''[[Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)|Bibliotheca]]''. Pausanias<ref>Pausanias, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.15.4&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.15.4], [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.16.2&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.16.2]–[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.16.3&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 3] & [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Paus.+2.18.1&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0160:book=:chapter=&highlight=Perseus 2.18.1]</ref> asserts that the Greeks believed Perseus founded Mycenae as his capital.<ref name = britannica/> He mentions the shrine to Perseus that stood on the left-hand side of the road from Mycenae to Argos, and also a sacred fountain at Mycenae called ''Persea''. Located outside the walls, this was perhaps the spring that filled the citadel's underground cistern. He states also that [[Atreus]] stored his treasures in an underground chamber there, which is why [[Heinrich Schliemann]] named the largest [[Beehive tomb|tholos]] tomb the [[Treasury of Atreus]].

Apart from these more historical references, the only accounts of him are from folk-etymology: Perseus dropped his cap or found a mushroom (both named ''myces'') at Mycenae, or perhaps the place was named after the lady Mycene, daughter of [[Inachus]], mentioned in a now-fragmentary poem, the ''[[Megalai Ehoiai]]''.<ref>[[Hesiod]], ''[[Megalai Ehoiai]]'' fr. 246</ref> For whatever reasons, perhaps as outposts, Perseus ''fortified'' Mycenae according to Apollodorus<ref>{{cite web |url=http://data.perseus.org/citations/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0548.tlg001.perseus-eng1:2.4.4 |id=2.4.4 |title=''pros-teichisas'', "walling in" |website=Perseus.org}}</ref> along with [[Midea, Greece|Midea]], an action that implies that they both previously existed. It is unlikely, however, that Apollodorus knew who walled in Mycenae; he was only conjecturing. Perseus took up official residence in Mycenae with Andromeda where he had a long, successful reign as king.

===''Suda''===
According to the ''[[Suda]]'', Perseus, after he married Andromeda, founded a city and called it Amandra (Ἄμανδραν). In the city there was a [[stele]] depicting the Gorgon. The city later changed the name to [[Ikonion]] because it had the depiction (ἀπεικόνισμα) of the Gorgon. Then he fought the [[Isaurians]] and the [[Cilicians]] and founded the city of [[Tarsus, Mersin|Tarsus]] because an oracle told him to found a city in the place where after the victory, the flat (ταρσός) of his foot will touch the earth while he is dismounting from his horse. Then he conquered the [[Medes]] and changed the name of the country to Persia. At Persia, he taught the [[magi]] about the Gorgon and, when a fireball fell from the sky, he took the fire and gave it to the people to guard and revere it.
Later, during a war, he tried to use Medusa's head again, but because he was old and could not see well, the head did not work. Because he thought that it was useless, he turned it toward himself and he died. Later his son Merros (Μέρρος) burned the head.<ref>[[Suda|Suida]], s.v. [http://www.poesialatina.it/_ns/greek/testi/Suda/Lexicon.html mu, 406]</ref>

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 title=[[King of Argos]]
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