Cellini’s Perseus, (1545-54) |
Perseus
Hero who slay Medusa and rescued Andromeda
Perseus was the son of Zeus and Danaë, daughter of Acrisius, king of Argos.
Scared by an oracular prophecy that his grandson would kill him, Acrisius set Perseus and Danaë adrift on the sea in a chest. They washed ashore on Seriphus, and were taken into the care of its king, Polydectes.
The king fell in love with Danaë, but his designs upon the princess were obstructed by Perseus. So Polydectes set Perseus the seemingly impossible task of slaying the gorgon Medusa, whose look turned men to stone.
Perseus and Medusa
Perseus forced the Graeae to help him. The Graeae were three old crones who were the sisters and guardians of the Gorgons. They had been grey-haired from birth and shared just one eye and one tooth between them. Perseus stole their eye and tooth and only returned them when the Graeae agreed to give him a pair of winged sandals, the cape of Hades, a sickle and a satchel. The sandals enabled him to fly and the cape conferred invisibility on its wearer.
Armed with a mirrored shield that Athena had given him, Perseus was ready for the attack. Wearing the cape and sandals, the invisible Perseus flew towards Medusa while she slept. Using the shield to look only at the gorgon’s reflection, Perseus severed her head with the sickle, and placed it in the satchel.
Returning from his quest, Perseus sought shelter with Atlas. When the giant refused, Perseus turned him into stone by showing him Medusa’s head, which still had the power to petrify after the gorgon’s death. This explains why the range of mountains in north-west Africa are known as the Atlas mountains.
Perseus and Andromeda
Continuing his homeward journey, Perseus passed Ethiopia, where he discovered a beautiful princess chained to the rocks.
Andromeda was being sacrificed to a sea-monster to lift a curse upon the country. Perseus killed the sea-monster and rescued her, and won the king’s approval to marry Andromeda.
However, the princess had already been promised to Phineas. When the jilted suitor turned up at the wedding celebrations with his armed supporters, Perseus used Medusa’s head to petrify them all.
Perseus and Andromeda became king and queen of Tiryns and Mycenae.
After his marriage Perseus returned to Seriphus, where he discovered that Polydectes was still pursuing his mother. Perseus used the gorgon’s head for the final time to petrify the king and then accompanied Danaë back to her native Argos.
Back in his birthplace, Perseus threw a discus which accidentally struck and killed King Acrisius– thereby fulfilling the prophecy that he would kill his grandfather.
Perseus presented Athena with Medusa’s severed head. She wore it upon her aegis (breastplate) for protection.