![]() ![]() Cassiopeia his queen, proud of her beauty, had dared to compare herself and her daughter to the Sea-Nymphs, which roused their indignation to such a degree that they sent a prodigious sea-monster to ravage the coast. Perseus, continuing his flight, arrived at the country of the Ethiopians, of which Cepheus was king. Each part increased in bulk till he became a mountain, and (such was the pleasure of the gods and goddesses) heaven with all its stars rests upon his shoulders.Ībove: Perseus turns Atlas into stone by showing him Medusa’s head, as imagined by the artist Johann Whilhelm Baur (this illustration is from about 1700) His beard and hair became forests, his arms and shoulders cliffs, his head a summit, and his bones rocks. Atlas, with all his bulk, was changed into stone. Perseus, finding the giant too strong for him, said, “Since you value my friendship so little, deign to accept a present.” And turning his face away, he held up the Gorgon’s head. So he answered, “Begone! Neither your false claims of glory nor parentage shall protect you!” And he attempted to thrust him out. I seek rest and food.”īut Atlas remembered that an ancient prophecy had warned him that a son of Zeus should one day rob him of his golden apples. If you honor mighty deeds, I claim the conquest of the Gorgon. If you honor those who are descended from the gods and goddesses, I claim Zeus for my father. But his chief pride was in his gardens, whose fruit was of gold, hanging from golden branches, half hid with golden leaves. ![]() He was rich in flocks and herds and had no neighbor or rival to dispute his state. It was the realm of the Atlas, a huge Titan. Here he would gladly have rested till morning. (Presumably Athena let him use the head for a time, but the old myths do not tell us this.) As night came on, he reached the western limit of the earth, where the sun goes down. (Drawing copyright (c) 2014 Dan Harper.)Īfter the slaughter of Medusa, Perseus, bearing with him the head of the Gorgon, flew far and wide, over land and sea. Notice that Perseus is not looking directly at the head, but rather at the reflection of the head in his shield. Perseus, favored by Athena and Hermes, the former of whom lent him her shield and the latter his winged shoes, approached Medusa while she slept, and taking care not to look directly at her, but guided by her image reflected in the bright shield which he bore, he cut off her head and gave it to Athena, who fixed it in the middle of her Aegis, or shield.Ībove: Perseus giving Medusa’s head to Athena, as imagined by an ancient Greek artist. All around the cavern where she dwelt might be seen the stony figures of men and animals which had chanced to catch a glimpse of her and had been petrified with the sight. She became a cruel monster of so frightful an aspect that no living thing could behold her without being turned into stone. She was once a beautiful maiden whose hair was her chief glory, but as she dared to vie in beauty with Athena, the goddess deprived her of her charms and changed her beautiful ringlets into hissing serpents. When Perseus was grown up Polydectes, king of the island of Seriphos, sent him to attempt the conquest of Medusa, a terrible monster who had laid waste the country. The chest floated towards Seriphus, where it was found by a fisherman who conveyed the mother and infant to Polydectes, the king of the country, by whom they were treated with kindness. Acrisius, still worried about the oracle, caused the mother and child to be shut up in a chest and set adrift on the sea. ![]() Soon Danae was pregnant, and gave birth to Perseus. This did not stop Zeus, who turned himself into a golden rain shower, and so entered the underground chamber where Danae was kept. Perseus’ grandfather Acrisius, alarmed by an oracle which had told him that his daughter’s child would be the instrument of his death, locked Danae in an underground room made out of bronze. ![]() Perseus was the son of the god Zeus and the human Danae. N.B.: This curriculum is still in development.īack to the Table of Contents | On to Session Six Compiled and edited by by Dan Harper and Tessa SwartzĬopyright (c) 2014 Dan Harper and Tessa Swartz ![]()
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