Perseus and Medusa
The hero's quest to slay the mortal Gorgon and his ingenious use of divine gifts to accomplish the impossible
The Meaning of Perseus and Medusa
Perseus, son of Zeus and the mortal Danaë, undertook one of mythology's most celebrated quests when King Polydectes of Seriphos sent him to bring back the head of Medusa — a task designed to be fatal. Medusa was one of three Gorgon sisters, the only one who was mortal. Once a beautiful maiden, she had been transformed by Athena into a monster with serpents for hair, bronze claws, and a gaze that turned any living creature to stone. Perseus received crucial aid from the gods: Athena gave him a polished bronze shield, Hermes provided winged sandals and the harpe (a curved adamantine blade), and the nymphs supplied the kibisis (a magical bag) and the cap of Hades (granting invisibility). Perseus first sought the Graeae, three ancient sisters who shared a single eye and tooth among them. He seized the eye and tooth as leverage, forcing them to reveal the Gorgons' location. Flying on the winged sandals to the Gorgons' lair at the edge of the world, Perseus found the three sisters sleeping. Using Athena's polished shield as a mirror, he approached Medusa without looking directly at her face and severed her head with a single stroke of the harpe. From Medusa's severed neck sprang the winged horse Pegasus and the giant Chrysaor, children she had conceived by Poseidon. Perseus placed the head in the kibisis and fled before Medusa's immortal sisters could pursue him.
Parents
None recorded
Symbols
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
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