When Perseus reached Seriphos, he discovered that, in his absence, Polydectes had mistreated his mother. The hostility between the couple seems to have arisen from Danae’s desire to delay the wedding until her son’s return; the king wanted to go ahead with the wedding because he knew— or thought he knew—that they would wait forever. Perseus confronted the king, and as they argued it dawned on the young man that the purpose of the Gorgon mission had been to kill him. Incensed, he held up the Gorgon’s head: as soon as Polydectes set eyes on her face, he turned to stone.
Perseus was reunited with Danae, and they decided to return to Argos. Before ' they left, Perseus gave Medusa’s head to the goddess Athena, who placed it on her shield or breastplate.
Below: This ancient Roman statue of Perseus depicts the hero holding the head of the Gorgon Medusa.
Perseus in Art
Below: In Edward Burne-Jones’s painting, Perseus does not steal the winged sandals but is given them by the Graeae, who are neither old nor ugly but young and beautiful.
Bibliography
Hesiod, and M. L. West, trans. Theogony and Works and Days. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Howatson, M. C. The Oxford Companion to Classical Literature. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
See also: Andromeda; BeUerophon; Danae; Gorgons; Heracles.
The exploits of Perseus have been a popular theme for artists throughout the Common Era. Two of the most distinguished works on the subject are Perseus Releases Andromeda by Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) and The Arming of Perseus by British painter Edward Burne-Jones (1833-1898). Both paintings adapt the Perseus legend to the artist's own purposes. Rubens depicts Perseus mounted on the winged horse Pegasus, even though most literary versions of the tale suggest that the hero flew with the aid of winged sandals. Burne-Jones, on the other hand, ignores the tradition that the Graeae were old and ugly. Instead, he portrays the three sisters as classic Pre-Raphaelite beauties.
World History
