Because of the obscurity of the name "Perseus" and the legendary character of its bearer, most etymologists presume that it might be pre-Greek; however, the name of Perseus's native city was Greek and so were the names of his wife and relatives. There is some idea that it descended into Greek from theProto-Indo-European language. In that regardGraves proposed the only Greek derivation available:Perseus might be from the Greek verbpérthein (πέρθειν) "to waste, ravage, sack, destroy", some form of which is familiar inHomeric epithets.[3] According toCarl Buck, the-eus suffix is typically used to form an agent noun, in this case from theaorist stem,pers-.Pers-eus therefore is a "sacker [of cities]";[4] that is, a soldier by occupation, a fitting name for the firstMycenaean warrior.
The further origin ofperth- is more obscure. Hofmann lists the possible root as*bher-, from which Latinferio, "strike".[5] This corresponds toPokorny's*bher-(3), "scrape, cut". Ordinarily*bh- descends to Greek asph-. This difficulty can be overcome by presuming adissimilation from the-th- inpérthein, which the Greeks would have preferred from a putative*phérthein.[6] Graves carries the meaning still further, to thePerse- inPersephone, goddess of death.[3]Ventris &Chadwick speculate about aMycenaean goddesspe-re-*82 (Linear B:𐀟𐀩𐁚), attested ontabletPY Tn 316, and tentatively reconstructed as*Preswa.[7]
A Greek folk etymology connectedPerseus to the name of thePersian people, whom they called thePérsai (fromOld PersianPārsa "Persia, a Persian"). However, the native name of the Persians –Pārsa inPersian – has always been pronounced with an-a-.Herodotus[8] recounts this story, devising a foreign son of Andromeda and Perseus,Perses, from whom the Persians took the name. Apparently the Persians also knew that story, asXerxes tried to use it to suborn theArgives during his invasion of Greece,[9] but ultimately failed to do so.
KingAcrisius of Argos had only one child, a daughter namedDanaë. Disappointed by not having a male heir, Acrisius consulted theOracle at Delphi, who warned him that he would one day be killed by his own grandson. To keep Danaë childless, Acrisius imprisoned her in a room atop a bronze tower in the courtyard of his palace:[a] Thismytheme is also connected toAres,Oenopion,Eurystheus, and others.Zeus came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and fathered her child.[11] Soon after, their child, a son, was born; Perseus. "Perseus Eurymedon,[b] for his mother gave him this name as well".[12]
Fearful for his future, but unwilling to provoke the wrath of the gods and theErinyes by killing the offspring of Zeus and his daughter, Acrisius cast the two into the sea in a woodenchest.[13] Danaë's fearful prayer, made while afloat in the darkness, has been expressed by the poetSimonides of Ceos. The mother and child were washed ashore on the island ofSeriphos, where they were taken in by the fishermanDictys ("fishing net"), who raised the boy to manhood. The brother of Dictys wasPolydectes ("he who receives/welcomes many"), the king of the island.
When Perseus was growing up on the island ofSeriphus,[2] Polydectes came to lust for the beautiful Danaë. Perseus believed Polydectes was less than honorable, and protected his mother from him; then Polydectes plotted to send Perseus away in disgrace. He held a largebanquet where each guest was expected to bring a gift.[c] Polydectes requested that the guests bringhorses, under the pretense that he was collecting contributions for the hand ofHippodamia, daughter of Oinomaos. Perseus had no horse to give, so he asked Polydectes to name the gift; he would not refuse it. Polydectes held Perseus to hisrash promise and demanded the snake-hairedMedusa's head.
Before setting out on his quest, Perseusprayed to the gods and Zeus answered by sending two of his other children –Hermes andAthena – to bless their half-brother with the weapons needed to defeat Medusa. Hermes gave Perseus his own pair ofwinged sandals to fly with and lent him hisharpe sword to slay Medusa with, andHades'shelm of darkness to become invisible with. Athena lent Perseus her polished shield for him to view Medusa's reflection without becoming petrified, and gave him akibisis, a knapsack to safely contain the Gorgon's head which the goddess warned could still petrify even in death. Lastly, Athena instructed Perseus to seek out theGraeae, the Gorgons' sisters, for the snake-haired women's whereabouts (in other versions, it was theHesperides nymphs who gave Perseus the weapons after he sought out the Graeae).
Following Athena's guidance, Perseus found the Graeae, who were three oldwitches that shared a single eye and a single tooth. As the witches passed their eye from one to another, Perseus snatched it from them, holding it for ransom in return for the Gorgons' location. The Graeae informed Perseus that the Gorgons lived on the Island of Sarpedon. Perseus then gave the Graeae their eye back and proceeded to the island.
On the Island of Sarpedon, Perseus came across a cave where Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa lay sleeping. Using Athena's reflective shield, Perseus overcame thelooking taboo by looking at her reflection on the shield to guide himself.[2] He then walked into the cave backwards, safely observing and approaching the sleeping Gorgons. With Athena guiding the sword, Perseusbeheaded Medusa. From Medusa's neck sprang her two children withPoseidon: thewinged horsePegasus ("he who sprang") and thegiantChrysaor ("sword of gold"). To avenge their sister's death, Stheno and Euryale flew after Perseus, but he escaped them by wearing Hades's invisibility helm.[14] From here he proceeded to visitKing Atlas ofMauretania, who had refused him hospitality; in revenge Perseus petrified him with Medusa's head and King Atlas became theAtlas mountains.[15]
On the way back to Seriphos, Perseus stopped in the kingdom ofAethiopia. This mythical Ethiopia was ruled by KingCepheus and QueenCassiopeia. Cassiopeia, having boasted that her daughterAndromeda was more beautiful than theNereids, drew the vengeance of Poseidon, who sent an inundation on the land and a sea serpent,Cetus, which destroyed man and beast. Theoracle of Ammon announced that no relief would be found until the king sacrificed his daughter, Andromeda, to the monster, and so she was fastened to a rock on the shore. Wearing the winged sandals given to him by Hermes, Perseus reached Andromeda and used the harpe to behead the monster (in other versions, Perseus used Medusa's head to petrify Cetus).[2] By rescuing Andromeda, Perseus claimed her in marriage.
Perseus rescuing Andromeda from Cetus, depicted on anamphora in theAltes Museum, Berlin
Perseus married Andromeda in spite ofPhineus, to whom she had been previously engaged. At the wedding, a quarrel took place between the rivals, and Phineus waspetrified by the sight of Medusa's head.[16] Andromeda ("queen of men") followed her husband toTiryns in Argos, and became the ancestress of the family of thePerseidae who ruled atTiryns through her son with Perseus,Perses.[d] After her death, she was placed by Athena among the constellations in the northern sky, near Perseus and Cassiopeia.[e]Sophocles andEuripides (and in more modern timesPierre 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 ofLibya, according toApollonius of Rhodes,[17] the falling drops of Medusa's blood created a race of toxic serpents, one of whom was to kill the ArgonautMopsus. Upon returning to Seriphos and discovering that his mother had to take refuge from the violent advances of Polydectes, Perseus killed him with Medusa's head, and made Dictys the new king of Seriphos.
Perseus and Andromeda, 1st century AD fresco from the Casa della Saffo,Pompeii
Perseus then returned his magical loans and gave Medusa's head as avotive gift to Athena, who set it on heraegis (which Zeus gave her) as theGorgoneion. The fulfillment of the oracle was told several ways, each incorporating the mythic theme of exile. InPausanias[18] he did not return to Argos, but went instead toLarissa, where athletic games were being held. He had just invented thequoit 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 theBibliotheca,[19] the inevitable occurred by another route: Perseus did return to Argos, but when Acrisius learned of his grandson's approach, mindful of the oracle he went into voluntary exile inPelasgiotis (Thessaly). There Teutamides, king ofLarissa, was holdingfuneral games for his father. Competing in the discus throw, Perseus's throw veered-and struck Acrisius, killing him instantly. In a third tradition,[20] Acrisius had been driven into exile by his brotherProetus. Perseus petrified the brother with Medusa's head and restored Acrisius to the throne. Then, accused by Acrisius of lying about having slain Medusa, Perseus proves himself by showing Acrisius the Gorgon's head, thus fulfilling the prophecy.
Having killed Acrisius, Perseus, who was next in line for the throne, gave the kingdom toMegapenthes ("great mourning"), son ofProetus, and took over Megapenthes's kingdom ofTiryns. The story is related in Pausanias,[21] who gives as motivation for the swap that Perseus was ashamed to have 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 proved a creative solution to a difficult problem.
The two main sources regarding the legendary life of Perseus—for the Greeks considered him an authentic historical figure—are Pausanias and theBibliotheca. Pausanias[22] asserts that the Greeks believed Perseus founded Mycenae as his capital.[2] 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 calledPersea. Located outside the walls, this was perhaps the spring that filled thecitadel's undergroundcistern. He states also thatAtreus stored his treasures in an underground chamber there, which is whyHeinrich Schliemann named the largesttholos tomb theTreasury of Atreus.
Apart from these more historical references, the only accounts of him are from folk-etymology: Perseus dropped his cap or found a mushroom (both namedmyces) at Mycenae, or perhaps the place was named after the lady Mycene, daughter ofInachus, mentioned in a now-fragmentary poem, theMegalai Ehoiai.[23] For whatever reasons, perhaps as outposts, Perseusfortified Mycenae according to Apollodorus[24] along withMidea, an action that implies that they both previously existed. It is unlikely, however, that Apollodorus knew who walled in Mycenae; he was only conjecturing. Perseus took up official residence in Mycenae with Andromeda where he had a long, successful reign as king.
According to theSuda, Perseus, after he married Andromeda, founded a city and called it Amandra (Ἄμανδραν). In the city there was astele depicting the Gorgon. The city later changed the name to Ikonion because it had the depiction (ἀπεικόνισμα) of the Gorgon. Then he fought theIsaurians and theCilicians and founded the city ofTarsus because an oracle told him to found a city in the place where after the victory, the flat (ταρσός) of his foot will touch the earth while he is dismounting from his horse. Then he conquered theMedes and changed the name of the country to Persia. At Persia, he taught themagi about the Gorgon and, when a fireball fell from the sky, he took the fire and gave it to the people to guard and revere it. Later, during a war, he tried to use Medusa's head again, but because he was old and could not see well, the head did not work. Because he thought that it was useless, he turned it toward himself and he died. Later his son Merros (Μέρρος) burned the head.[25]
This articleis missing information about which specific person of each linked name such asAlexander is a descendant. Please expand the article to include this information. Further details may exist on thetalk page.(October 2020)
A statement by the Athenian oratorIsocrates[26] helps to date Perseus approximately. He said that Heracles was four generations later than Perseus, which corresponds to the legendary succession: Perseus,Electryon,Alcmena, andHeracles, who was a contemporary ofEurystheus.Atreus was one generation later, a total of five generations.
Descendants of Perseus and Andromeda Before the Time of Heracles to the Aftermath of the Trojan War
Edward Burne-Jones:The Baleful Head, 1885,Staatsgalerie Stuttgart.This part of the series plays with the theme of the reflected gaze, as Perseus has Andromeda look at the Gorgon's head, but only as reflected in the well.
The replacement ofBellerophon as the tamer and rider ofPegasus by the more familiarculture hero Perseus was not simply an error of painters and poets of theRenaissance. 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'sGenealogia deorum gentilium libri (10.27) identifies Pegasus as the steed of Perseus, andPierre Corneille places Perseus upon Pegasus inAndromède.[27] Variousmodern representations of Pegasus depict the winged horse with Perseus, including the fantasy filmClash of the Titans and its2010 remake.
Perseus has aconstellation named after him. The legend says that because he was so brave fighting Cetus for someone else he was given a place in the stars forever. It is located in the east in the winter at about the Latitude 10-N. It is not far from the starsBetelgeuse andSirius; his wife's constellationAndromeda is also nearby. It is southward from Cassiopeia, and to the left of Taurus. His constellation contains the most famous variable star Algol and some deep sky objects such as Messier 34, the Double Cluster, the California Nebula, and the Little Dumbbell Nebula (Messier 76). There are eight named stars in the constellationAlgol, Atik, Berehinya, Menkib, Miram, Mirfak, Misam, and Muspelheim. It was cataloged in the 2nd century by the Greek astronomerPtolemy and is known for the famous Perseid Meteor Shower. There is in fact a wholefamily of constellations based on the myth of Perseus, which includes Andromeda,Cassiopeia,Cepheus, andCetus. There is also a molecular cloud in the constellation that is 600light years from theSolar System. There is also a cluster of galaxies called the Perseus cluster. There is one galaxy in the cluster named Caldwell 24 which is a powerful source for radio and X-ray waves. It has a visual magnitude of 12.6 and is 237 million light years away from theMilky Way galaxy.[28][29]
^"Even thus endured Danaë in her beauty to change the light of day for brass-bound walls; and in that chamber, secret as the grave, she was held close".[10] In post-Renaissance paintings the setting is often a locked tower.
^Such a banquet, to which each guest brings a gift, was aneranos. The name ofPolydectes, "receiver of many", characterizes his role as intended host but is also aeuphemism for the Lord of the Underworld, as in"Hymn to Demeter".Homeric Hymns. 9, 17.
^For the familiar motif of theExposed Child in the account ofMoses especially, seeChilds, Brevard S. (1965). "The birth of Moses".Journal of Biblical Literature.84 (2):109–122.doi:10.2307/3264132.JSTOR3264132. orRedford, Donald B. (1967). "The literary motif of the exposed child (cf. Ex. ii 1–10)".Numen.14 (3):209–228.doi:10.2307/3269606.JSTOR3269606. Another example of this mytheme is the Indian figure ofKarna.
Suida,Suda Encyclopedia translated by Ross Scaife, David Whitehead, William Hutton, Catharine Roth, Jennifer Benedict, Gregory Hays, Malcolm Heath Sean M. Redmond, Nicholas Fincher, Patrick Rourke, Elizabeth Vandiver, Raphael Finkel, Frederick Williams, Carl Widstrand, Robert Dyer, Joseph L. Rife, Oliver Phillips and many others.Online version at the Topos Text Project.
Cartwright, Mark."Perseus". World History Encyclopedia, World History Encyclopedia, 8 Mar. 2022.
