Andromeda
Andromeda was an Ethiopian princess chained to a sea cliff as sacrifice to a monster — rescued by Perseus, who petrified the beast with Medusa's head.
The Legend of Andromeda
Daughter of the Ethiopian king Cepheus, Andromeda was chained to a sea-cliff because her mother Cassiopeia boasted of surpassing the Nereids in beauty. Poseidon sent the monster Cetus to ravage the coast. Perseus, returning from slaying Medusa with Athena's shield and Hermes' winged sandals, saw Andromeda and fell in love. He turned Cetus to stone with Medusa's head and married her. At the wedding, he petrified the rival suitor Phineus. Zeus set both Perseus and Andromeda among the stars, honouring the lineage that would produce Heracles.
Parents
Cepheus and Cassiopeia
Symbols
Fun Fact
The Andromeda Galaxy — the nearest large galaxy to our own — is named after this princess. It's visible to the naked eye.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
Explore Further
Andromeda
🗡 herorescue
Ethiopian princess chained to a rock as sacrifice to a sea monster, rescued by Perseus, and placed among the stars.
Cepheus
🗡 heroNone recorded
King of Aethiopia who nearly sacrificed his daughter Andromeda to a sea monster
Hesione
🗡 herocaptivity
Trojan princess chained to a rock as sacrifice to a sea monster, rescued by Heracles, then given to Telamon as a war prize.
Cepheus
🗡 herotragedy
Ethiopian king who chained his own daughter Andromeda to a rock to appease Poseidon's sea monster.
Peleus
🗡 heroMortal who married a goddess
The king of Phthia who wrestled and won the sea-nymph Thetis, fathering Achilles — the greatest warrior of the Trojan War.
Cassiopeia
🗡 heroQueen whose vanity endangered her daughter
Cassiopeia was the queen who boasted her beauty exceeded the sea nymphs — provoking Poseidon to demand her daughter Andromeda as sacrifice.
Theseus
🗡 heroheroism
Athenian prince who entered the Cretan Labyrinth, killed the Minotaur with Ariadne's help, then abandoned her on Naxos.
Perseus
🗡 heroHero who slew Medusa
The son of Zeus and Danae who beheaded Medusa, rescued Andromeda, and founded the Perseid dynasty of Mycenae.
Cassiopeia
🗡 heroNone recorded
Vain queen of Aethiopia whose boast brought a sea monster upon her kingdom
Perseus and Andromeda
💭 conceptNarrative
The rescue of an Ethiopian princess from a sea monster by the Gorgon-slaying hero
Anaxibia
🗡 heroMarriage, royalty
Mycenaean princess who married Strophius of Phocis and raised the young Orestes in secret
Peleus
🗡 heroheroism
King of Phthia, Argonaut, and father of Achilles who wrestled the shape-shifting sea goddess Thetis to win her as his bride.