Perseus 209446 225865048 2008-07-15T19:33:12Z Oceanblueeyes 5289658 /* Overcoming the Gorgon */ {{for|other meanings|Perseus (disambiguation)}} [[Image:Persus-with-the-head-of-med.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Perseus with the head of Medusa, by [[Antonio Canova]], completed 1801 ([[Vatican Museums]])]] {{Greek myth}} '''Perseus''', '''Perseos''', or '''Perseas''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: '''Περσεύς''', '''Περσέως''', '''Περσέας'''), the [[legendary]] founder of [[Mycenae]] and of the [[Mycenae|Perseid dynasty]] there, was the first of the mythic heroes of [[Greek mythology]] whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the [[founding myth]]s in the cult of the [[Twelve Olympians]]. Perseus was the hero who killed [[Medusa]] and claimed [[Andromeda (mythology)|Andromeda]], having rescued her from a sea monster. == Origin at Argos == Perseus was the son of [[Danaë]] who, by her very name, was the [[archetype]] and eponymous ancestor of all the [[Danaans]].<ref>Kerenyi 1959:45; see also [[Danaus]].</ref> She was the only daughter of [[Acrisius]], King of [[Argos]]. Disappointed by his lack of luck of not having a son, Acrisius consulted the [[oracle]] at [[Delphi]], who warned him that although destined to remain without a wife, he would one day be killed by his daughter's son. Danaë was childless and to keep her so, he shut her up in a bronze chamber underground:<ref>In post-Renaissance paintings the setting is often a locked tower.</ref> This [[mytheme]] is also connected to [[Ares]], [[Oenopion]], [[Eurystheus]], etc. Zeus came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and impregnated her. Soon after was born their child Perseus— ''"Perseus Eurymedon,<ref>''Eurymedon'': "far-ruling"</ref> for his mother gave him this name as well"'' (Apollonius of Rhodes, ''[[Argonautica]]'' IV). Fearful for his future but unwilling to provoke the wrath of the gods by killing Zeus's offspring and his own daughter, Acrisius cast the two into the sea in a wooden chest.<ref>For the familiar motif of the [[Exposed Child]] in the account of [[Moses]] especially, see Brevard S. Childs, "The Birth of Moses" ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' '''84'''.2 (June 1965), pp 109-122, and Donald B. Redford, "The Literary Motif of the Exposed Child (Cf. Ex. ii 1-10)" ''Numen'' '''14'''.3 (November 1967), pp 209-228. Another example of this mytheme is the Indian figure of [[Karna]].</ref> Danaë's fearful prayer made while afloat in the darkness has been expressed by the poet [[Simonides of Ceos]]. Mother and child washed ashore on the island of [[Seriphos]], where they were taken in by the fisherman [[Dictys]], who raised the boy to manhood. The brother of Dictys was [[Polydectes]], the king of the island. == Overcoming the Gorgon == After some time, Polydectes fell in love with Danaë and desired to remove Perseus from the island. He thereby hatched a plot to send him away in disgrace. Polydectes announced a banquet<ref>Such a banquet, to which each guest brings a gift, was an ''[[eranos]]''. The name of ''Polydectes'', "receiver of many", characterizes his role as intended host but is also a [[euphemism]] for the Lord of the Underworld, as in the [[Homeric Hymn]] to Demeter 9, 17.</ref> wherein each guest would be expected to bring him a horse, that he might woo [[Hippodamia]], "tamer of horses". The fisherman's protegé had no horse but promised instead to bring him some other gift. Polydectes held Perseus to his rash promise. He immediately demanded the head of [[Medusa (mythology)|Medusa]], one of the [[Gorgon]]s, whose very expression turns people to stone. The Medusa was horselike in archaic representations,<ref>Kerenyi 1959:48; [[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]] (viii.25.5): "When Demeter was wandering in search of her daughter, she was followed, it is said, by Poseidon, who lusted after her. So she turned, the story runs, into a mare, and grazed with the mares of Oncius; realizing that he was outwitted, Poseidon too changed into a stallion and enjoyed Demeter."</ref> the terrible filly of a mare—[[Demeter]], the Mother herself—who was in her mare nature when Poseidon assumed stallion form and coveted her. Another version of this story is that Medusa was in fact a mortal woman who had an affair with the god Poseidon. One day Athena caught the two of them in her temple and as punishment turned the poor woman into a hideous monster. For such a heroic quest, a divine helper would be necessary, and for a long time Perseus wandered aimlessly, without hope of ever finding the Gorgons or of being able to accomplish his mission. According to the iconography of the [[Pottery of Ancient Greece|vase-painters]], the gods [[Hermes]], [[Athena]] and [[Hades]] came to his rescue. Hermes gave him an [[adamantine]] curved sword,<ref>The sword of Perseus is an antique weapon, a ''[[harpe]]'' with a sickle-like extension to one side of the blade, for thrust and cut.Hermes also gave him winged sandels to fly. See Canova's ''Perseus'' (''illustration'').</ref> while Athena gave him a highly-polished bronze shield, and Hades gave a helmet of invisibility (see [[Helm of Darkness]]). For his further journey, the version of [[Aeschylus]], in his lost [[tragedy]], ''The Daughters of [[Phorcys]]'' must have "simplified the journey of Perseus through the realms of thrice-three goddesses and probably left out the first three, the [[Naiad|spring-nymphs]].... On an ancient vase-painting we see the nymphs receiving the hero, one bringing him the winged sandals ([[talaria]]), another the helmet of invisibility,<ref>Ordinarily the helm of invisibility belonged to [[Hades]].</ref> the third the wallet, ''kibisis'', for the Gorgon's head" (Kerenyi 1959:49-50). They told him to go to the [[Hesperides|island of the golden apples to the west]]. He went there like a swift walker on the air (Nonnus, ''[[Dionysiaca]]'' xxv.32) and asked the Hesperidae where the [[Graeae]] were. They told him and made him promise to come back and dance with them. He went to the [[Graeae]], sisters of the gorgons, three perpetually old women with one eye and tooth among them. Perseus snatched the eye at the moment they were blindly passing it from one to another so they could not see him and he would not return it until they had given him directions. With all this, ''"Like a wild boar he entered the cave"'' (This is the one line of [[Aeschylus]], ''The Phorkides'' ["The Daughters of Phorcys"] that survives). After he was done with the Graeae sisters he threw the tooth and the eye into a lake. In the cave he came upon the sleeping Gorgons. By viewing Medusa's reflection in his polished shield, he could safely approach and cut off her head; from her neck sprang [[Pegasus]] and [[Chrysaor]]. The other two Gorgons pursued him, but under his helmet of invisibility he escaped. == Marriage with Andromeda== [[Image:Perseus und Andromeda MKL1888.png|thumb|right|175px|Perseus and Andromeda.]] On the way back to Seriphos, Perseus stopped in the Phoenician kingdom [[Ethiopia (Mythology)|Ethiopia]], ruled by King [[Cepheus, King of Aethiopia|Cepheus]] and Queen [[Boast of Cassiopeia|Cassiopeia]]. Cassiopeia, having boasted herself equal in beauty to the sea Nereids, drew down the vengeance of [[Poseidon]], who sent an inundation on the land and a sea-monster, [[Ceto]], which destroyed man and beast. The [[Siwa|oracle of Ammon]] announced that no relief would be found until the king exposed his daughter Andromeda to the monster, and so she was fastened to a rock on the shore. Perseus slew the monster and, setting her free, claimed her in marriage. In the classical myth, he flew using the flying sandals. [[Renaissance]] Europe and modern imagery has generated the idea that Perseus flew mounted on Pegasus.<ref>For the Greeks, the tamer and first rider of Pegasus was [[Bellerophon]].</ref> Perseus married Andromeda in spite of [[Phineus]], to whom she had before been promised. At the wedding a quarrel took place between the rivals, and Phineus was turned to stone by the sight of the Gorgon's head.<ref>[[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses (poem)|Metamorphoses]]'' 5.1-235.</ref> Andromeda ("queen of men") followed her husband to [[Tiryns]] in [[Argos]], and became the ancestress of the family of the [[Perseidae]] through her son with Perseus, [[Perses]]. After her death she was placed by Athena amongst the constellations in the northern sky, near Perseus and Cassiopeia.<ref>''[[Catasterismi]]''.</ref> [[Sophocles]] and [[Euripides]] (and in more modern times [[Pierre Corneille]]) made the episode of Perseus and Andromeda the subject of tragedies, and its incidents were represented in many ancient works of art. As Perseus was flying in his return above the sands of [[Libya (mythology)|Libya]], according to [[Apollonius of Rhodes]],<ref>''[[Argonautica]]'', IV.</ref> the falling drops of Medusa's blood engendered a race of toxic serpents, one of whom was to kill the Argonaut [[Mopsus]]. On returning to Seriphos and discovering that his mother had had to take refuge from the violent advances of Polydectes, Perseus killed him with Medusa's head, and made his brother Dictys king. == The oracle fulfilled == Perseus then returned his magical loans and gave Medusa's head as a [[votive gift]] to [[Athena]], who set it on [[Zeus]]' shield (which she carried), as the ''[[Gorgon]]eion'' (see also: [[Aegis]]). The [[Self-fulfilling prophecy|fulfillment]] of the oracle was told several ways, each incorporating the mythic theme of exile. In [[Pausanias (geographer)|Pausanias]]<ref>12.16.1</ref> he did not return to Argos, but went instead to [[Larissa]], where athletic games were being held. [[Image:Piero di Cosimo 042.jpg|thumb|left|Perseus frees Andromeda (detail), by [[Piero di Cosimo]], 1515 ([[Uffizi]])]] He had just invented the [[Quoits|quoit]] and was making a public display of them when Acrisius, who happened to be visiting, stepped into the trajectory of the quoit and was killed: thus the oracle was fulfilled. This is an unusual variant on the story of such a prophecy, as Acrisius's actions did not, in this variant, cause his death. In [[Apollodorus]]' version,<ref>2.4.4</ref> the inevitable occurred by another route: Perseus did return to Argos, but when he learned of the oracle, went into voluntary exile in [[Pelasgians|Pelasgiotis]] ([[Thessaly]]). There Teutamides, king of [[Larissa]], was holding funeral games for his father. Competing in the discus throw Perseus' throw veered and struck Acrisius, killing him instantly. In a third tradition,<ref>[[Metamorphoses (poem)|Metamorphoses]], 5.177</ref> Acrisius had been driven into exile by his brother, [[Proetus]]. Perseus turned the brother into stone with the Gorgon's head and restored Acrisius to the throne. Having killed Acrisius, Perseus, who was next in line for the throne, gave the kingdom to [[Megapenthes]] son of [[Proetus]] and took over Megapenthes' kingdom of [[Tiryns]]. The story is related in Pausanias,<ref>loc. cit.</ref> which gives as motivation for the swap that Perseus was ashamed to become king of Argos by inflicting death. In any case, early Greek literature reiterates that manslaughter, even involuntary, requires the exile of the slaughterer, expiation and ritual purification. The exchange might well have been a creative solution to a difficult problem; however, Megapenthes would have been required to avenge his father, which, in legend, he did, but only at the end of Perseus' long and successful reign. [[Image:Firenze.Loggia.Perseus02.JPG|thumb|220px|[[Benvenuto Cellini]]'s ''Perseus'']] == King of Mycenae == The two main sources regarding the legendary life of Perseus&mdash;for he was an authentic historical figure to the Greeks&mdash; are Pausanias and [[Apollodorus]], but from them we obtain mainly folk-etymology concerning the founding of Mycenae. Pausanias<ref>2.15.4, 2.16.3-6, 2.18.1</ref> asserts that the Greeks believed Perseus founded Mycenae. He mentions the shrine to Perseus that stood on the left-hand side of the road from Mycenae to Argos, and also a sacred fountain at Mycenae called ''Persea''. Located outside the walls, this was perhaps the spring that filled the citadel's underground cistern. He states also that [[Atreus]] stored his treasures in an underground chamber there, which is why [[Heinrich Schliemann]] named the largest [[tholos]] tomb the [[Treasury of Atreus]]. Apart from these more historical references, we have only folk-etymology: Perseus dropped his cap or found a mushroom (both named ''myces'') at Mycenae, or perhaps the place was named from the lady Mycene, daughter of [[Inachus]], mentioned in a now-missing poem, the great ''[[Eoeae]]''. For whatever reasons, perhaps as outposts, Perseus ''fortified'' Mycenae according to Apollodorus<ref>2.4.4, ''pros-teichisas'', "walling in"</ref> along with [[Midea, Greece|Midea]], an action that implies that they both previously existed. It is unlikely, however, that Apollodorus knew who walled in Mycenae; he was only conjecturing. In any case, Perseus took up official residence in Mycenae with Andromeda. == Descendants of Perseus == [[Image:Dalí.Perseo.JPG|175px|left|thumb|Perseus by [[Salvador Dalí]]]] Perseus and Andromeda had seven sons: [[Perses (son of Andromeda and Perseus)|Perses]], [[Alcaeus (mythology)| Alcaeus]], Heleus, Mestor, [[Sthenelus]], [[Electryon]] and Cynurus, and two daughters, [[Gorgophone]] ("Gorgon Killer") and Autochthoe ("Born in the Land"). Perses was left in [[Ethiopia (Mythology)|Aethiopia]] and became an ancestor of the emperors of [[Persian Empire|Persia]]. The other descendants ruled Mycenae from [[Electryon]] down to [[Eurystheus]], after whom [[Atreus]] got the kingdom. However, the Perseids included the great hero, [[Heracles]], step-son of [[Amphitryon]], son of [[Alcaeus]]. The Heraclides, or descendants of Heracles, successfully contested the rule of the Atreids. A statement by the Athenian orator, [[Isocrates]]<ref>4.07</ref> helps to date Perseus roughly. He said that Heracles was four generations later than Perseus, which corresponds to the legendary succession: Perseus, [[Electryon]], [[Alcmene|Alcmena]], and [[Heracles]], who was a contemporary of [[Eurystheus]]. [[Atreus]] was one generation later, a total of five generations. <!--original research:Taking 1223 as the start of Atreus' reign and assuming an average generation of 25 years brings the date for the start of Perseus' reign to about 1373, which is roughly consistent with the archaeology. It would have been Perseus after all who had the Cyclopean wall built ca. 1350. The Egyptian embassy of about 1380 might have been for the purpose of cementing diplomatic relations with the new dynasties in power. It is logical to assume that the first act of the Pelopids when they obtained the throne of Mycenae would be to strengthen the defenses, adding the extension to the north and the secret cistern about 1220.--> == Etymology == Because of the obscurity of the name ''Perseus'' and the legendary character of its bearer, most etymologists pass it by, on the presumption that it might be pre-Greek. However, the name of Perseus’ native city was Greek and so were the names of his wife and relatives. There is some prospect that it descended into Greek from the [[Proto-Indo-European language]]. In that regard [[Robert Graves]] has espoused the only Greek derivation available. Perseus might be from the ancient Greek verb, ''perthein'', “to waste, ravage, sack, destroy”, some form of which appears in Homeric epithets. According to [[Carl Darling Buck]] (''Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin''), the ''–eus'' suffix is typically used to form an agent noun, in this case from the [[aorist]] stem, ''pers-''. ''Pers-eus'' therefore is a sacker of cities; that is, a soldier by occupation, a fitting name for the first Mycenaean warrior. The origin of ''perth-'' is more obscure. J. B. Hofmann<ref>Hofmann, ''Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Griechischen'' (Munich) !950.</ref> lists the possible root as ''*bher-'', from which Latin ''ferio'', "strike". This corresponds to [[Julius Pokorny]]’s ''*bher-''(3), “scrape, cut.” Ordinarily *bh- descends to Greek as ph-. This difficulty can be overcome by presuming a dissimilation from the –th– in ''perthein''; that is, the Greeks preferred not to say *pherthein. Graves carries the meaning still further, to the ''perse-'' in [[Persephone]], goddess of death. [[John Chadwick]] in the second edition of ''Documents in Mycenaean Greek'' speculates as follows about the goddess pe-re-*82 of [[Pylos]] tablet Tn 316, tentatively reconstructed as *Preswa: :”It is tempting to see...the classical [[Perse]]...daughter of [[Oceanus]]...; whether it may be further identified with the first element of Persephone is only speculative.” A Greek folk etymology connected the name of the [[Persian people|Fars]] people, whom they called the Persai. The native name, however has always had an -a- in Iranian. [[Herodotus]]<ref>Herodotus, vii.61</ref>recounts this story, devising a foreign son, Perses, from whom the Persians took the name. Apparently the Persians themselves<ref>Herodotus vii.150</ref> knew the story, as [[Xerxes]] tried to use it to suborn the Argives during his invasion of Greece. [[Cyrus Gordon]], known for his daring theories, proposed<ref>''Forgotten Scripts'', Basic Books, 1982, ISBN 0-465-02484-X, Chapter 7</ref> that Perseus is a Semitic name, from p-r-s, "to cut." Nothing in the lore or the evidence excludes the possibility of Semitic elements among the early Greeks. The Greeks thought that Perseus meant "destroyer", but p-r-s would mean that as well. ==Perseus on Pegasus== The replacement of [[Bellerophon]] as the tamer and rider of [[Pegasus]] by the more familiar [[culture hero]] Perseus was not simply an error of painters and poets of the [[Renaissance]]. The transition was a development of Classical times which became the standard image during the Middle Ages and has been adopted by the European poets of the Renaissance and later: [[Giovanni Boccaccio]]'s ''[[Genealogia deorum gentilium libri]]'' (10.27) identifies Pegasus as the steed of Perseus, and [[Pierre Corneille]] places Perseus upon Pegasus in ''Andromède''.<ref>George Burke Johnston "[[Ben Jonson|Jonson's]] 'Perseus upon Pegasus'" ''The Review of English Studies'' New Series, '''6'''.21 (Jan., 1955), pp. 65-67. </ref> == Modern uses of the theme == *The legend of Perseus was the basis for the [[1981 in film|1981]] film ''[[Clash of the Titans]]''. Perseus was played by [[Harry Hamlin]], who also voiced Perseus in the 2007 video game ''[[God of War II]]''. *In [[Hermann Melville]]'s ''[[Moby-Dick]]'', the narrator asserts that Perseus was the first whaleman, when he killed [[Ceto]] to save Andromeda.<ref>[[Hermann Melville|Melville, Hermann]] (1851), ''[[Moby-Dick]]. [[:s:Moby-Dick/Chapter 82|Chapter 82: The Honor and Glory of Whaling]]''</ref> *Percy (Perseus) Jackson is the title character in the popular childrens series, [[Percy Jackson & The Olympians]]. He is a son of [[Poseidon]]. *Perseus is the name of a high-end retail clothing store in the game [[Grand Theft Auto 4]]. *In the video game [[F.E.A.R]], Project Perseus was a private military program designed to clone thousands of super-soldiers able to communicate telepathically. Under the commander's control they kill on sight and take over a major American city (according to the game). ==Notes== <!--This article uses the Cite.php citation mechanism. If you would like more information on how to add references to this article, please see http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Cite/Cite.php --> <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count:2;"> <references /> </div> == References == *[[Karl Kerenyi|Kerenyi, Karl]], 1959. ''The Heroes of the Greeks''. *[http://www.theoi.com/Heros/Perseus.html Perseus in classical literature and art] {{Commonscat|Perseus}} [[Category:Greek mythology]] [[Category:Mythological kings]] [[Category:Offspring of Zeus]] [[Category:Abantiades]] [[Category:Argive mythology]] [[bs:Perzej (mitologija)]] [[br:Perseüs]] [[bg:Персей (митология)]] [[ca:Perseu (heroi mític)]] [[cs:Perseus]] [[cy:Perseus (mytholeg)]] [[da:Perseus]] [[de:Perseus (Mythologie)]] [[et:Perseus]] [[el:Περσέας]] [[es:Perseo]] [[eo:Perseo]] [[fa:پرسئوس]] [[fr:Persée]] [[ko:페르세우스]] [[hr:Perzej (mitologija)]] [[is:Perseifur]] [[it:Perseo (mitologia)]] [[he:פרסאוס]] [[la:Perseus]] [[lb:Perseus (Mythologie)]] [[lt:Persėjas]] [[hu:Perszeusz (mitológia)]] [[nl:Perseus (mythologie)]] [[ja:ペルセウス]] [[no:Persevs]] [[pl:Perseusz (mitologia)]] [[pt:Perseu]] [[ro:Perseu]] [[ru:Персей (мифология)]] [[simple:Perseus]] [[sk:Perseus (mytológia)]] [[sl:Perzej]] [[sr:Персеј]] [[sh:Perzej (mitologija)]] [[fi:Perseus]] [[sv:Perseus (mytologi)]] [[tr:Perseus (mitoloji)]] [[uk:Персей]] [[zh:珀耳修斯]]