All about history book of myths and legends. ( PDFDrive )

Perseus – one of the greatest Greek heroes –

was the son of Zeus and Danaë, the daughter

of Acrisius, the King of Argos. An oracle had

once predicted that Acrisius would be killed

by his daughter’s son. To prevent the oracle’s

warning from coming true, he imprisoned

his daughter and grandson, Perseus, in a

wooden chest and threw it into the sea. The

chest reached the island of Seriphos, where

Perseus and his mother were rescued by the

king, Polydectes, who brought him up. Many

years later, Polydectes would be the one to

send Perseus on his most perilous journey –

to retrieve the head of the Gorgon Medusa.

The Exploits of Perseus

Medusa meets her death

Medusa’s deadly glance only worked when she looked

at her victims directly, so Athena helped Perseus use

her shield as a mirror as he took aim with his sword.

The three Graeae

Wearing Hades’s helmet, Perseus crept

past the Graeae, three sisters with one

eye and one tooth between them, who

guarded the cave of the Gorgons.

Head of Medusa

Like the other Gorgons, Medusa

was a female monster with snakes

for hair. However, she was the only

mortal among the Gorgons.

CLASSICAL EUROPE

THE SLAYING OF MEDUSA

Perseus rashly boasted to Polydectes that he would behead one of the

three monstrous Gorgons. When Polydectes held him to his boast,

Perseus decided to slay Medusa, a Gorgon who could turn men

to stone with her gaze. Divine assistance was needed for Perseus

to complete his task, so the deities of Mount Olympus lent

Perseus several objects that helped him succeed. He used

Hermes’s winged sandals to fly to the place where Medusa lived,

and Hades’s helmet of invisibility to gain access to her dwelling.

With Athena’s shield, polished like a mirror, he approached the

Gorgon, avoiding her direct gaze. And with Hephaestus’s diamond

sword, he chopped of Medusa’s head, thus making good his boast.

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