For other uses, see, A large part of Greek myth is politico-religious history. : [16] Diodorus and Palaephatus mention that the Gorgons lived in the Gorgades, islands in the Aethiopian Sea. He made quick work of her intestines with the blade she brought him. ], Medusa alone had serpents in her hair, and he explained that this was due to Athena (Roman Minerva) cursing her. 1285, see pictures below). 450–440 BCE, attributed to Polygnotos of Thasos. Medusa was a fearsome monster called a Gorgon. [17] A primeval Gorgon was sometimes said to be the father of Medusa and her sister Gorgons by the sea Goddess Ceto. The Graiai (Graeae), sisters of the Gorgones, formed the chorus. Lionesses or sphinxes frequently are associated with the Gorgon as well. Her soul also takes a snake-like theme, closely resembling the head of the Gorgon of Greek Legend, Medusa. Athena gave Perseus her mirror-bright shield, telling him to look at Medusa only in its reflective surface while fighting her. Going even further back into history, there is a similar image from the Knossos palace, datable to the 15th century BC. Dec 29, 2014 - Explore yael cohen's board "woman with snake on the head" on Pinterest. Athena helped Peseus to kill Medusa because she wanted to wear Medusa's head on her Aegis as a warning to strangers and young women. In modern culture, Medusa is seen as a powerful symbol of female intelligence and wisdom, related to the goddess Metis, who was a wife of Zeus. According to historian Joseph Campbell (1904–1987), the Greeks used the Medusa story to justify the destruction of idols and temples of an ancient goddess mother wherever they found them. Poets claimed that she had a great boar-like tusk and tongue lolling between her fanged teeth. Transitions in religious traditions over such long periods of time may make some strange turns. — J. Campbell (1968)[9][b], While seeking origins others have suggested examination of some similarities to the Babylonian creature, Humbaba, in the Gilgamesh epic. The flag and emblem of Sicily also features her head. she changed that Gorgon's hair to horrid snakes. [citation needed] Athena gave a vial of the healing blood to Asclepius, which ultimately brought about his demise. The awkward stance of the gorgon, with arms and legs at angles is closely associated with these symbols as well. The name is Greek, being derived from "gorgos" and translating as terrible or dreadful. The Bibliotheca provides a good summary of the Gorgon myth. “She gave me snakes for hair, remade my bones … but they don’t petrify because of that .” As she spoke, her talons sank into my arm, tugged me forward; she smelled like a mausoleum left to the ages. Another story reported by the British classicist Robert Graves is that Medusa was the name of a fierce Libyan queen who took her troops into battle and was beheaded when she lost. The Head of the Medusa by Pieter Pauwel Rubens, from 1617. Medusa Head at Yerebatan Sarayi Cistern in Istanbul. Ancient Libya is identified as a possible source of the deity, Neith, who also was a creation deity in Ancient Egypt and, when the Greeks occupied Egypt, they said that Neith was called Athene in Greece. Professor Hainmond assigns the historical King Perseus of Mycenae to a date. The end of each braid can be decorated with a snake’s head made out of paper. Some of these myths relate that Perseus was armed with a scythe from Hermes and a mirror (or a shield) from Athena. This relief of Medusa was part of a temple at Ephesus, Turkey, built by P. Quintilius before 128 CE, and dedicated to the Emperor Hadrian. We may now think of the legend of her slayer, Perseus, by whom her head was removed and presented to Athene. Virgil mentions that the Gorgons lived in the entrance of the Underworld. What creatures grew on Medusa's head? In late myths, Medusa was the only one of the three Gorgons who was not immortal. In the Odyssey, the Gorgon is a monster of the underworld into which the earliest Greek deities were cast: ... and pale fear seized me, lest august Persephone might send forth upon me from out of the house of Hades the head of the Gorgon, that awful monster ...[11](11.635). Also when she gets serious or just wants to be scary, her face takes on the likeness of a snake. Of the three Gorgons in classical Greek mythology, only Medusa is mortal. In these contexts, it protects the dead, guards buildings or tombs, and wards off evil spirits. The Bibliotheca[14] provides a good summary of the Gorgon myth. Their home is on the farthest side of the western ocean; according to later authorities, in Libya. The nearer he came, the more terrible did the snaky visage and metallic body of the monster grow. Moreover, many do not know that the image of the Gorgon was very important in Ancient art and was used to ward off evil. Perseus swore he would kill the Gorgon but had no idea of how to do it. Because of their legendary and powerful gaze that could turn one to stone, images of the Gorgons were put upon objects and buildings for protection. They may be represented by spirals, wheels, concentric circles, swastikas, firewheels, and other images. While she was there, Poseidon saw her and either seduced her or raped her, and she became pregnant. Medusa was a monster in Greek mythology, known as a Gorgon. The Gorgon’s head was another prominent symbol of Athena, who was said to have been given it by Perseus after helping him slay the monster. This symbol played into her role in the slaying of the Gorgon Medusa, who had snakes for hair. Medusa represents philosophy, beauty and art. She was the daughter of Phorcys, a God of the sea, and Ceto, a female sea God. That is to say, there occurred in the early thirteenth century B.C. Pausanias (5.10.4, 8.47.5, many other places), a geographer of the 2nd century AD, supplies details of where and how gorgons were represented in Greek art and architecture. He later used her head as a weapon to turn enemies to stone. Another source says that Perseus buried the head in the marketplace of Argos. At last, when he found himself hovering over her within arm's length, Perseus uplifted his sword, while at the same instant each separate snake upon the Gorgon's head stretched threateningly upward, and Medusa unclosed her eyes. Her head rolled from side to side, the snakes limp. [3] She also identifies the prototype of the Gorgoneion in Neolithic art motifs, especially in anthropomorphic vases and terracotta masks inlaid with gold.[4]. And to this day, Minerva, to dismay and terrify her foes, wears on her breast the very snakes that she herself had set - as punishment - upon Medusa's head. Because her head was placed on Athena’s shield (the Aegis) and her blood was revealed to hold the power of both life and death, Medusa’s head became a symbol of protection. Legend says while she was there baby snakes dropped from her head and this is why there are plenty of snakes in Africa. The shape of their heads and the griffin and snake decorations have led sholars to compare them to the forms of bronze cauldrons used in … Danaë gave birth to a son, Perseus.Though Danaë managed to hide her son from her father Acrisius for a couple years, he later found out about the existence of his grandson and decided to get rid of him. The Three Gorgons are sisters: Medusa (the Ruler) is a mortal, her immortal sisters are Stheno (the Strong) and Euryale (the Far-Springer). She was made into marble and bronze sculptures. In ancient Greek mythology, Medusa is a Gorgon, one of three hideous sisters whose appearance turns men to stone. There are many depictions of her being beheaded by Perseus in Greek art. from Humphries translation She was a very lovely one, the hope of many An envious suitor, and of all her … The Attic tradition, reproduced in Euripides (Ion), regarded the Gorgon as a monster, produced by Gaia to aid her children, the Titans, against the new Olympian deities. The Bibliotheca (2.2.6, 2.4.1, 2.4.2) provides a good summary of the Gorgon myth. In this regard Gorgoneia are similar to the sometimes grotesque faces on Chinese soldiers’ shields, also used generally as an amulet, a protection against the evil eye. Perseus, in a variant of the same legend, flies through the air and beheads Pegasus’s mother, the Gorgon Medusa; much as Marduk, a Babylonian hero, kills the she-monster Tiamat, Goddess of the Seal. Aided by Hermes and Athena, Perseus finds his way to the Graiai and tricks them by stealing their one eye and tooth. The Gorgon… In Greek mythology, Medusa (/ mɪˈdjuːzə, - sə /; Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress") also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. After hiding the head in his bag, he quickly flew away from the two remaining, fearful and angry Gorgons, and returned home. Other sources say that each drop of blood became a snake. At last, when he found himself hovering over her within arm's length, Perseus uplifted his sword, while at the same instant each separate snake upon the Gorgon's head stretched threateningly upward, and Medusa unclosed her eyes. Around 700 BC, Hesiod,[13] imagines the Gorgons as sea daemons and increases the number of them to three – Stheno (the mighty), Euryale (the far-springer, or of the wide sea), and Medusa (the queen), and makes them the daughters of the sea deities Keto and Phorcys. [citation needed]. Ultimately, he used her against King Polydectes. The main island was called Cerna. Medusa was the only Gorgon who was mortal; hence her slayer, Perseus, was able to kill her by cutting off her head. Danae is the object of desire of Polydectes, the king of the Cycladic island of Seriphos. She had the face of a hideous woman, but had poisonous snakes on her head, instead of hair. Henry T. Riley suggests these islands may correspond to Cape Verde.[15]. The snake-like head is a symbol of her cunning, a perversion of the matrifocal ancient goddess who the Greeks must destroy. The oldest oracles were said to be protected by serpents and a Gorgon image was often associated with those temples. Medusa had copulated with Poseidon (Roman Neptune) in a temple of Athena after he was aroused by the golden color of Medusa's hair. In late myths, the Gorgons were said to be the daughters of two sea deities: Keto, the sea monster, and Phorcys, her brother-husband. Much later stories claim that each of three Gorgon sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, had snakes for hair , and that they had the power to turn anyone who looked at them to stone. From her skin, a goat-like hide rimmed with serpents, he made his famous aegis, and placed her fearsome visage upon it. In some Greek myths, blood taken from the right side of a Gorgon could bring the dead back to life, yet blood taken from the left side was an instantly fatal poison. Medusa had hair but then Athena cursed her so now her hair is snakes and if you look in to her eyes then she will turn you into stone. Although Hesiod gives an account of Medusa’s origins and the death of Medusa at the hands of Perseus, he does not say more about her. Then Aix became the goat Capra (Greek: Aix), on the left shoulder of the constellation Auriga. The Gorgon is the mother goddess who originates from the Assyrian snake demon, as represented by a bearded, snake-brandishing female appearing, for example, on a Luristan bronze. An Amazon with her shield bearing the Gorgon head image. Leonardo da Vinci did a painting of her using oil on canvas. The king, sensing that Perseus was an obstacle to pursuing Danae, sends him on the impossible mission to bring back the head of Medusa. K. Kris Hirst is an archaeologist with 30 years of field experience. In general, the appearance and death of Medusa are thought to be the symbolic repression of an older matriarchal religion. She had the face of a hideous woman, but had poisonous snakes on her head, instead of hair. ihsanGercelman / iStock / Getty Images Plus. In Greek mythology Medusa (Greek: Μέδουσα (Médousa), "guardian, protectress") was a monster, a Gorgon, generally described as having the face of a hideous human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair.Gazing directly upon her would turn onlookers to stone. [6], Gorgon of Paros, marble statue at the Archaeological Museum of Paros, 6th century BC, Cyclades, Greece, Disk-fibula with a gorgoneion, bronze with repoussé decoration, second half of the 6th century BC (Louvre), An archaic Gorgon (around 580 BC), as depicted on a pediment from the temple of Artemis in Corfu, on display at the Archaeological Museum of Corfu, Winged goddess with a Gorgon's head, orientalizing plate, c.600 BC, from Kameiros, Rhodes, Gorgon Medusa 200 AD with wings at the top of her head (Romano-Germanic Museum in Cologne), A number of early classics scholars interpreted the myth of the Medusa as a quasi-historical, or "sublimated", memory of an actual invasion. Gorgons are humanoids with hideous, broad-headed monsters with wild eyes, lolling tongues, wide mouths with enormous, gnashing teeth, clawed hands. Gorgons sometimes are depicted as having wings of gold, brazen claws, the tusks of boars, but most often with the fangs and skin of a serpent. Likewise, in Hindu mythology, Kali is often shown with a protruding tongue and snakes around her head. The Greek hero Perseus was the one who beheaded Medusa. Athena gave Perseus her mirror-bright shield, telling him to look at Medusa only in its reflective surface while fighting her. Medusa was a monster in Greek mythology, known as a Gorgon. He went to her island while she was asleep and moved her snakes of hair out of the way and then chopped her head off. To the Greeks, Medusa is the leader of an ancient, older matriarchal religion that had to be obliterated; in modern culture, she represents vital sensuality and a power that is threatening to males. The powerful image of the Gorgon was adopted for the classical images and myths of Zeus and Athena, perhaps being worn in continuation of a more ancient imagery. Perseus is said by some to have given the head, which retained the power of turning into stone all who looked upon it, to Athena. from Humphries translation She was a very lovely one, the hope of many An envious suitor, and of all her … Some Gorgons are shown with broad, round heads, serpentine locks of hair, large staring eyes, wide mouths, tongues lolling, the tusks of swine, large projecting teeth, flared nostrils, and sometimes short, coarse beards. Some of the reptilian attributes associated with the Gorgon are a belt made of snakes, and snakes either emanating from her head, or entangled in her hair. In Greek mythology Medusa (Greek: Μέδουσα (Médousa), "guardian, protectress") was a monster, a Gorgon, generally described as having the face of a hideous human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair.Gazing directly upon her would turn onlookers to stone. Gorgons are often depicted as having wings, brazen claws, the tusks of boars, and scaly skin. From the blood that spurted from her neck and falling into the sea, sprang Pegasus and Chrysaor, her sons by Poseidon. Her face had a strange ... Braid your hair so it sticks out in all directions. She uses the magic chant "Nake snake cobra cobubra", and is themed with arrow markings. As a result of consorting with Poseidon, she is said to have birthed Pegasus, the winged horse, and Chrysaor, the hero of the golden sword. Athena therefore changed the enticing golden locks into serpents. In this sculpture, a snake is seen crawling up the goddess' shield and many more snakes and a gorgon head are depicted on her aegis, or protective collar. It shows the severed head of the mythological monster. [5] (In some cruder representations, stylized hair or blood flowing under the severed head of the Gorgon has been mistaken for a beard or wings. He was able to defeat the Gorgon by lopping off her head, which he was able to do by fighting her reflection in his highly polished shield. Those who gazed into her eyes would turn to stone. Medusa's severed head, upside down or on one cheek, is featured as the base of several columns in the large underground cistern built by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I (527–565 CE). How many snakes each Gorgon had on her head? Traditionally, two of the Gorgons, Stheno and Euryale, were immortal, but their sister Medusa was not and was slain by the demigod and hero Perseus. she changed that Gorgon's hair to horrid snakes. Other sources claim that each of three Gorgon sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa had snakes for hair, and had … All three of the Gorgon sisters have glaring eyes, huge teeth (sometimes boar's tusks), a protruding tongue, brazen claws, and serpent or octopus locks. Aeschylus, Phorcides (lost play) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) They are one of the many mystically race created by the Olympians. Gorgons were a popular image in Greek mythology, appearing in the earliest of written records of Ancient Greek religious beliefs such as those of Homer, which may date to as early as 1194–1184 BC. In this work, Ovid describes Medusa as originally being a beautiful maiden. For example, the ivory statue of Athena in the Parthenon in Athens had an image of Medusa on her chest. The name derives from the ancient Greek word γοργός gorgós, which means "grim, dreadful", and appears to come from the same root as the Sanskrit: गर्जन, garjana, which is defined as a guttural sound, similar to the growling of a beast,[1] thus possibly originating as an onomatopoeia. There he walked into the dining hall where his enemies sat, pulled the head out of its bag, and immediately turned each of the men into stone (Hamilton 1942:146-154). Medusa was a Gorgon: creatures of Greek mythology, and we can choose to subscribe to the legend that she was a winged human with living venomous snakes in place of hair, and anyone who looked at her turned to stone. Snakes writhe on either side of their heads and necks, and the Gorgon on the left has griffin heads growing from the top of her head. In A Tale of Two Cities, for example, Charles Dickens compares the exploitative French aristocracy to "the Gorgon" — he devotes an entire chapter to this extended metaphor. She is killed by the hero Perseus, who cuts off her head.To the Greeks, Medusa is the leader of an ancient, older matriarchal religion that had to be obliterated; in modern culture, she represents vital sensuality and a power that is threatening to males. Classical interpretations suggest that Gorgon was slain by Athena, who wore her skin thereafter. Her face had a strange power. The Gorgoneion was an amulet that bore the head of a Gorgon. Writhing snakes were entwining her head in place of hair. Athena's shield also features Medusa's head in the centre with snakes forming a border around it. Athena was often shown with snakes on the edges of her clothing, or around her feet in later sculptures. Her The plot revolved around Perseus' quest for the head of Medousa (Medusa). From c. 200 B.C. From the blood that spurted from her neck sprang Chrysaor and Pegasus, her two sons by Poseidon. Terracotta pilike (jar), Attic period, ca. She then placed it on the mirrored shield called Aegis and she gave it to Zeus. She was the daughter of Phorcys, a God of the sea, and Ceto, a female sea God. Two species of snakes contain her name: the venomous pitviper Bothriopsis medusa and the nonvenomous snake called Atractus medusa. Medusa's witch animal theme is snakes. Medusa wandered Africa for some time. This figure may have been the same as Gorgo Aix as the primal Gorgon was of an indeterminable gender. Much later stories claim that each of three Gorgon sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, had snakes for hair, and that they had the power to turn anyone who looked at them to stone. Medusa was a Gorgon: creatures of Greek mythology, and we can choose to subscribe to the legend that she was a winged human with living venomous snakes in place of hair, and anyone who looked at her turned to stone. While descriptions of Gorgons vary and occur in the earliest examples of Greek literature, the term commonly refers to any of three sisters who later were described as having hair made of living, venomous snakes, as well as a horrifying visage that turned those who beheld them to stone. She gave him a goatskin to bundle her head into, and instructed him to find the three Gray Sisters at the top of the world. Mythical Creatures: The Monsters from Greek Mythology, The 10 Greatest Heroes of Greek Mythology, The Minotaur: Half Man, Half Bull Monster of Greek Mythology. Perseus ordered her head severed and mounted to the ship’s bow. However Zeus, who had fallen in love with her, manifested as a shower of gold upon her prison chamber and somehow impregnated her. There are two major conflicting stories for Aphrodite's origins: Most sources describe Medusa as the daughter of Phorcys and Ceto, though the author, Cultural depictions of Medusa and Gorgons, F.T. From then on, similarly to Euryale and Stheno, her older Gorgon sisters, Medusa was depicted with bronze hands and wings of gold. He went to her island while she was asleep and moved her snakes of hair out of the way and then chopped her head off. Perseus could safely cut off Medusa's head without turning to stone by looking only at her reflection in the shield. Its earthly counterpart is a device on the shield of Agamemnon: ... and therein was set as a crown the Gorgon, grim of aspect, glaring terribly, and about her were Terror and Rout.[10](11.35ff). before her siblings realized what had happened. One of the earliest representations is on an electrum stater discovered during excavations at Parium. When Perseus returned to the court of the king, Polydectes asked if he had the head of Medusa. The other group of sisters is the Graiai, the "old women," Pemphredoo, Enyo, and Deino or Perso, who share one tooth and one eye which they pass between them; the Graiai play a role in Medusa's myth. The large Gorgon eyes, as well as Athena's "flashing" eyes, are symbols termed "the divine eyes" by Gimbutas (who did not originate the perception); they appear also in Athena's sacred bird, the little owl. Lionesses or sphinxes are frequently associated with the Gorgon as well. Aeschylus says that the three Gorgons had only one tooth and one eye between them, which they had to swap between themselves. Gorgoneia (figures depicting a Gorgon head, see below) first appear in Greek art at the turn of the 8th century BC. Their frightful aspect turns men to stone. Also from Assyria is the story of Gilgamesh, whose exploits include taking the head of Humbaba, the terrifying god-appointed Guardian of the Cedar Forest, a creature depicted in art as a monstrous, grimacing head. Heracles is said to have obtained a lock of Medusa’s hair (which possessed the same powers as the head) from Athena and to have given it to Sterope, the daughter of Cepheus, as a protection for the town of Tegea against attack. That is probably what the Roman emperor Justinian (527–565 CE) had in mind when he included older sculptures of Medusa's head turned on its side or upside down as plinths at the base of two columns in the underground Christian cistern/basilica of Yerebatan Sarayi in Constantinople. King Polydectes sent Perseus to kill Medusa in hopes of getting him out of the way, while he pursued Perseus's mother, Danae. According to other accounts, either he or Athena used the head to turn Atlas into stone, transforming him into the Atlas Mountains that held up both heaven and earth. Public domain ). who beheaded Medusa work, Ovid describes Medusa as originally a. Second of a snake ’ s Metamorphoses the matrifocal ancient goddess who the Greeks must destroy snake. 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