Topics in Greek mythology
Gods Primordial gods and Titans Zeus and the Olympians Pan and the nymphs Apollo and Dionysus Sea-gods and Earth-gods
Heroes Heracles and his Labors Achilles and the Trojan War Odysseus and the Odyssey Jason and the Argonauts Perseus and Medusa/Gorgon Oedipus and Thebes Theseus and the Minotaur Triptolemus and the Eleusinian Mysteries
Related Satyrs, centaurs and dragons Religion in Ancient Greece

Perseus, Perseos, or Perseas (Greek: Περσεύς, Περσέως, Περσέας), the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty there, was the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths in the cult of the Twelve Olympians. The Vatican Museums (Musei Vaticani in Viale Vaticano in Rome, inside the Vatican City, are one of the greatest museums in the world since they display works Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and Heroes the nature of the world and the origins and significance The ancient Greeks proposed many different ideas about primordial deities in their mythology, which would later be largely adapted by the In Greek mythology, the Titans ( Greek: Tītā́n; plural Tītânes) were a race of powerful Deities that ruled during the legendary Zeus (zjuːs in Greek: nominative: Zeús /zdeús/ genitive: Diós; Modern Greek /'zefs/ in Greek mythology The Twelve Olympians, also known as the Dodekatheon ( Greek: Δωδεκάθεον Pan ( Greek, Genitive) is the Greek god of shepherds and flocks of mountain wilds hunting and rustic music paein means to pasture In Greek mythology, a nymph is any member of a large class of mythological entities in human female form In Classical mythology, Dionysus or Dionysos (in Greek, Διόνυσος or Διώνυσος; associated with Roman The ancient Greeks had a large number of sea deities. The philosopher Plato once remarked that the Greek people were like frogs sitting around a pond -- their Chthonic (from Greek χθόνιος khthonios "of the earth" from khthōn "earth" pertaining to the Earth; earthy subterranean In Greek mythology, Heracles or Herakles ("glory of Hera " or The Twelve Labours of Hercules (Greek Δωδεκαθλος, dodekathlos) age a series of archaic episodes connected by a later continuous narrative concerning "Achilleus" redirects here For the emperor with this name see Achilleus (emperor. In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans after Paris of Troy stole Helen from her grc-Latn Odysseus or la Ulysses ( Greek grc-Latn Odysseus; Latin: la Ulixes or more commonly Ulysses) oʊˈdɪsiəs The Odyssey ( Greek: Ὀδύσσεια or Odússeia) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. Jason ( Greek: Ἰάσων, Etruscan: Easun, Laz: Yason) was a late ancient Greek mythological In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece (Χρυσόμαλλον Δέρας is the fleece of the winged ram Chrysomallos (Χρυσόμαλλος In Greek mythology, Medusa ( Greek: Μέδουσα (Médousa "guardian protectress" was a monstrous Chthonic female character gazing upon In Greek mythology, a gorgon ( Greek: γοργώ or γοργών transl Oedipus (pronounced /ˈɛdəpəs/ in American English or /ˈiːdəpəs/ in British English; Greek: Oidípous meaning "swollen-footed" The Seven against Thebes (Επτά επί Θήβας Epta epi Thēbas) is a mythic narrative whose classic statement is found in the play by Aeschylus (467 BCE For other uses see Theseus (disambiguation Theseus (Θησεύς was a Legendary king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered In Greek mythology, the Minotaur ( Greek:, Mīnṓtauros) was a creature that was part man and part bull. Buzyges redirects here For the Genus of Grass skipper Butterflies, see Buzyges (butterfly. The Eleusinian Mysteries (Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια were initiation ceremonies held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone Mystery Religions, Sacred Mysteries or simply Mysteries, were "religious cults of the Graeco-Roman In Greek mythology, satyrs (Σάτυροι Satyroi) are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus – " Satyresses quot In Greek mythology, the centaurs (from Ancient Greek: Κένταυροι - Kéntauroi are a race of creatures composed of part Human Dragons play a role in Greek mythology. Ladon was a Dragon -like beast that was slain by Heracles in the garden of the Hesperides during the Twelve Greek religion encompasses the collection of beliefs and rituals practiced in Ancient Greece in the form of both popular public religion and cult practices. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly A legend ( Latin, legenda, "things to be read" is a Narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to "Lion Gate" redirects here For other uses see Lions' Gate (disambiguation. "Lion Gate" redirects here For other uses see Lions' Gate (disambiguation. Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and Heroes the nature of the world and the origins and significance A founding myth (Greek aition) is the etiological myth that explains the origins of a Ritual or the founding of a city group belief philosophy discipline The Twelve Olympians, also known as the Dodekatheon ( Greek: Δωδεκάθεον Perseus was the hero who killed Medusa and claimed Andromeda, having rescued her from a sea monster. In Greek mythology, Medusa ( Greek: Μέδουσα (Médousa "guardian protectress" was a monstrous Chthonic female character gazing upon Andromeda was a woman from Greek mythology who as divine punishment for her mother's bragging was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster

Contents 1 Origin at Argos 2 Overcoming the Gorgon 3 Marriage with Andromeda 4 The oracle fulfilled 5 King of Mycenae 6 Descendants of Perseus 7 Etymology 8 Perseus on Pegasus 9 Modern uses of the theme 10 Notes 11 References

Origin at Argos

Perseus was the son of Danaë who, by her very name, was the archetype and eponymous ancestor of all the Danaans. For other uses see Danae (plant and Danaë (painting In Greek mythology, Danaë (Δανάη English translation An archetype ( pronounced: /ˈɑːkɪtaɪp/ (Brit or /ˈɑrkɪtaɪp/ (Amer ^[1] She was the only daughter of Acrisius, King of Argos. Acrisius ( Ancient Greek:) was a mythical king of Argos, and a son of Abas and Aglaea (or Ocalea, depending on the author Argos ( Greek: Ἄργος, Árgos ˈaɾɣos is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor 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. An oracle is a person or agency considered to be a source of wise counsel or prophetic opinion an Infallible authority usually spiritual in nature Delphi ( Greek,) ( pronounce and dialectal forms) is an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western Danaë was childless and to keep her so, he shut her up in a bronze chamber underground:^[2] This mytheme is also connected to Ares, Oenopion, Eurystheus, etc. In the study of Mythology, a mytheme is the essential kernel of a myth an irreducible unchanging element similar to a cultural Meme, one that is always found shared In Greek mythology, Ares ( Ancient Greek:, Μodern Greek Άρης) is the son of Zeus and Hera. In Greek mythology, Oenopion ( Ancient Greek: grc Οἰνοπίων English translation: "wine drinker" "wine-faced" son of In Greek mythology, Eurystheus was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid: Sthenelus was his father Zeus came to her in the form of a shower of gold, and impregnated her. Soon after was born their child Perseus— "Perseus Eurymedon,^[3] for his mother gave him this name as well" (Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica IV). The Argonautica ( Greek:) is a Greek Epic poem written by Apollonius Rhodius in the 3rd century BCE.

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. ^[4] 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. Seriphos or Serifos ( Greek: Σέριφος is a Greek island municipality in the Aegean Sea, located in the western Cyclades Dictys was a name attributed to four men in Greek mythology. Dictys was a Fisherman and brother of King Polydectes of Seriphos The brother of Dictys was Polydectes, the king of the island. In Greek mythology, King Polydectes was the ruler of the island of Seriphos, son of Magnes and an unnamed Naiad.

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^[5] wherein each guest would be expected to bring him a horse, that he might woo Hippodamia, "tamer of horses". Hippodamia (also Hippodamea) was a daughter of King Oenomaus and wife of Pelops with whom her offspring were Thyestes, Atreus 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, one of the Gorgons, whose very expression turns people to stone. In Greek mythology, Medusa ( Greek: Μέδουσα (Médousa "guardian protectress" was a monstrous Chthonic female character gazing upon In Greek mythology, a gorgon ( Greek: γοργώ or γοργών transl The Medusa was horselike in archaic representations,^[6] the terrible filly of a mare—Demeter, the Mother herself—who was in her mare nature when Poseidon assumed stallion form and coveted her. Demeter (dɨˈmiːtɚ Greek:, possibly "distribution-mother" from the noun of the Indo-European mother-earth * dheghom * mater 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 vase-painters, the gods Hermes, Athena and Hades came to his rescue. Thanks to its hardy nature pottery bulks large in the archaeological record of Ancient Greece, and because we have so much of it (some 100000 vases are recorded in the Corpus Hermes ( Greek,, ˈhɝmiːz in Greek mythology, is the Olympian god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them of Shepherds and ATHENA was an Antimatter research project that took place at the AD Ring at CERN. Hades (from Greek, Hadēs, originally, Haidēs or, Aidēs, probably from Indo-European *n̥-wid- 'unseen' refers both to the ancient Hermes gave him an adamantine curved sword,^[7] while Athena gave him a highly-polished bronze shield, and Hades gave a helmet of invisibility. 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 spring-nymphs. Aeschylus (ˈɛskɨləs or /ˈiːskɨləs/ Greek: Ασχύλος, Aischylos, 525 BC/524 BC 456 BC/455 BC was an ancient Greek Playwright In Greek mythology, Phorcys, or Phorkys (Φόρκυς was one of the names of the "Old Man One of the Sea" the primeval sea god, who according In Greek mythology, the Naiads or Naiades (Ναϊάδες from the Greek νάειν "to flow" and νἃμα "running water" . . . On an ancient vase-painting we see the nymphs receiving the hero, one bringing him the winged sandals (talaria), another the helmet of invisibility,^[8] the third the wallet, kibisis, for the Gorgon's head" (Kerenyi 1959:49-50). Talaria are winged sandals a typical icon of the Greek Messenger God Hermes ( Roman equivalent Mercury)

They told him to go to the island of the golden apples to the west. In Greek mythology, the Hesperides ( Greek:) are Nymphs who tend a blissful garden in a far western corner of the world located near the Atlas mountains He went there like a swift walker on the air (Nonnus, Dionysiaca xxv. Theophanes Nonnus was a Byzantine physician For the saint of this name see Saint Nonnus. 32) and asked the Hesperidae where the Graeae were. The Graeae ( English translation: "old women" "gray ones" or "gray witches" alternatively spelled Graiai (Γραῖαι Graiae 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. The Graeae ( English translation: "old women" "gray ones" or "gray witches" alternatively spelled Graiai (Γραῖαι Graiae 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). Aeschylus (ˈɛskɨləs or /ˈiːskɨləs/ Greek: Ασχύλος, Aischylos, 525 BC/524 BC 456 BC/455 BC was an ancient Greek Playwright 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. In Greek mythology, Pegasus ( Greek: Πήγασος, Pégasos, 'strong' was a winged horse that was the son of Poseidon, in his role In Greek mythology, Chrysaor ( Greek: Χρυσάωρ Khrusaōr; English translation: "He who has a golden armament " the The other two Gorgons pursued him, but under his helmet of invisibility he escaped.

Marriage with Andromeda

On the way back to Seriphos, Perseus stopped in the Phoenician kingdom Ethiopia, ruled by King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia. In Greek mythology, Ethiopia (Aethiopia was a Phoenician kingdom stretching from Syria down to the shores of the Red Sea. In Greek mythology, Cepheus was ruler of the Phoenician nation of Aethiopia, Ethiopia Andromeda was a woman from Greek mythology who as divine punishment for her mother's bragging was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster 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. In Greek mythology, Poseidon ( Greek:; Latin: Neptūnus) was the god of the Sea and as "Earth-Shaker" The 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. The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere ^[9]

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. ^[10] 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. Tiryns (in ancient Greek Τίρυνς and in modern Τίρυνθα is a Mycenaean Archaeological site in the Greek nomos of Argos ( Greek: Ἄργος, Árgos ˈaɾɣos is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor Andromeda was a woman from Greek mythology who as divine punishment for her mother's bragging was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster After her death she was placed by Athena amongst the constellations in the northern sky, near Perseus and Cassiopeia. ^[11] 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. Sophocles (ˈsɒfəkliːz Ancient Greek, sopʰoklɛ̂ːs circa Euripides ( Ancient Greek:) (ca 480 BC–406 BC was the last of the three great tragedians of classical Athens (the other two being Aeschylus Pierre Corneille ( June 6, 1606 – October 1, 1684) was a French tragedian who was one of the three great seventeenth Century French

As Perseus was flying in his return above the sands of Libya, according to Apollonius of Rhodes,^[12] the falling drops of Medusa's blood engendered a race of toxic serpents, one of whom was to kill the Argonaut Mopsus. Libya is the name given to both a region of North Africa ( Ancient Libya) and a daughter of Epaphus, King of Egypt in both Greek and Roman In Greek mythology, Mopsus or Mopsos ( Greek) was the name of two famous seers 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 Gorgoneion (see also: Aegis). A votive deposit or votive offering is an object left in a Sacred place for Ritual purposes ATHENA was an Antimatter research project that took place at the AD Ring at CERN. Zeus (zjuːs in Greek: nominative: Zeús /zdeús/ genitive: Diós; Modern Greek /'zefs/ in Greek mythology In Greek mythology, a gorgon ( Greek: γοργώ or γοργών transl "Aegis" (ˈiːdʒɨs has entered modern English to mean a shield protection or sponsorship originally from the name of the mythological protective shield of Zeus

The fulfillment of the oracle was told several ways, each incorporating the mythic theme of exile. A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true In Pausanias^[13] he did not return to Argos, but went instead to Larissa, where athletic games were being held. Pausanias ( Greek:) was a Greek traveller and Geographer of the 2nd century CE, who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Larissa ( Greek: Λάρισα, Lárisa) is the capital city of the Thessaly periphery of Greece, and capital of the

He had just invented the 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. Piero di Cosimo (also known as Piero di Lorenzo) ( January 2, 1462 &ndash April 12, 1522) was an Florentine painter The Uffizi Gallery (Galleria degli Uffizi one of the oldest and most famous Art Museums in the world is housed in the Palazzo degli Uffizi, a Quoits (koits kwoits (Pronunciation "k-waits" is a traditional Lawn game involving the throwing of a metal or rubber ring over a set distance to land over a pin 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,^[14] the inevitable occurred by another route: Perseus did return to Argos, but when he learned of the oracle, went into voluntary exile in Pelasgiotis (Thessaly). The name Pelasgians (from Ancient Greek grc Πελασγοί Pelasgoí, singular Πελασγός Pelasgós) was used by some ancient Greek Thessalia redirects here For the Butterfly Genus, see Thessalia (butterfly. There Teutamides, king of Larissa, was holding funeral games for his father. Larissa ( Greek: Λάρισα, Lárisa) is the capital city of the Thessaly periphery of Greece, and capital of the Competing in the discus throw Perseus' throw veered and struck Acrisius, killing him instantly.

In a third tradition,^[15] Acrisius had been driven into exile by his brother, Proetus. Proetus was a mythical king of Tiryns. His father Abas, son of the last surviving Danaid, had ruled over Argos as well and 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. For the Click beetle Genus, see Megapenthes (beetle. In Greek mythology Proetus was a mythical king of Tiryns. His father Abas, son of the last surviving Danaid, had ruled over Argos as well and Tiryns (in ancient Greek Τίρυνς and in modern Τίρυνθα is a Mycenaean Archaeological site in the Greek nomos of The story is related in Pausanias,^[16] 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.

King of Mycenae

The two main sources regarding the legendary life of Perseus—for he was an authentic historical figure to the Greeks— are Pausanias and Apollodorus, but from them we obtain mainly folk-etymology concerning the founding of Mycenae. Benvenuto Cellini Pausanias^[17] 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. In Greek mythology, King Atreus ( Greek: Ατρεύς Atreús) (fearless of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia Heinrich Schliemann (ˈʃliːman ( January 6 1822 in Neubukow Mecklenburg-Schwerin - December 26 1890, Naples) was a German As a generic term tholos tomb is an alternative name for a Beehive tomb from the late Bronze Age. The Treasury of Atreus or Tomb of Agamemnon is an impressive " tholos " tomb at Mycenae, Greece (on the Panagitsa Hill

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. In Greek mythology, Inachus ( Greek: Ἴναχος personified the Inachus River the modern Panitsa that drains the western margin of the Argive plain The Catalogue of Women ( Greek: γυναικών κατάλογος gynaikōn katalogos) is an Ancient Greek poem

For whatever reasons, perhaps as outposts, Perseus fortified Mycenae according to Apollodorus^[18] along with Midea, an action that implies that they both previously existed. Midea (Μιδέα is a municipality in Argolis, Greece, with a population of 6724 (2001 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

Perseus and Andromeda had seven sons: Perses, Alcaeus, Heleus, Mestor, Sthenelus, Electryon and Cynurus, and two daughters, Gorgophone ("Gorgon Killer") and Autochthoe ("Born in the Land"). Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech 1st Marquis of Púbol (May 11 1904 &ndash January 23 1989 was a Spanish Catalan Surrealist In Greek mythology, Perses was the son of Andromeda and Perseus, and the ancestor of the Persians. In Greek mythology, Sthenelus was a name attributed to four different individuals In Greek mythology, Electryon was the son of Perseus and Andromeda, and king of Mycenae. In Greek mythology, Gorgophone ( Greek: Γοργοφόνη was a daughter of Perseus and Andromeda. Perses was left in Aethiopia and became an ancestor of the emperors of Persia. In Greek mythology, Ethiopia (Aethiopia was a Phoenician kingdom stretching from Syria down to the shores of the Red Sea. The Persian Empire was a series of Iranian empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau, the original Persian homeland and beyond in Western Asia The other descendants ruled Mycenae from Electryon down to Eurystheus, after whom Atreus got the kingdom. In Greek mythology, Electryon was the son of Perseus and Andromeda, and king of Mycenae. In Greek mythology, Eurystheus was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid: Sthenelus was his father In Greek mythology, King Atreus ( Greek: Ατρεύς Atreús) (fearless of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia However, the Perseids included the great hero, Heracles, step-son of Amphitryon, son of Alcaeus. In Greek mythology, Heracles or Herakles ("glory of Hera " or Amphitryon, or Amphitrion, in Greek mythology, was a son of Alcaeus, king of Tiryns in Argolis. The Heraclides, or descendants of Heracles, successfully contested the rule of the Atreids.

A statement by the Athenian orator, Isocrates^[19] helps to date Perseus roughly. Isocrates ( Greek: Ἰσοκράτης 436–338 BC an Ancient Greek rhetorician, was one of the ten Attic orators. He said that Heracles was four generations later than Perseus, which corresponds to the legendary succession: Perseus, Electryon, Alcmena, and Heracles, who was a contemporary of Eurystheus. In Greek mythology, Electryon was the son of Perseus and Andromeda, and king of Mycenae. In Greek mythology, Alcmene or Alcmena ( Greek:) was the mother of Heracles In Greek mythology, Heracles or Herakles ("glory of Hera " or In Greek mythology, Eurystheus was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid: Sthenelus was his father Atreus was one generation later, a total of five generations. In Greek mythology, King Atreus ( Greek: Ατρεύς Atreús) (fearless of Mycenae was the son of Pelops and Hippodamia

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. Robert Graves (24 July 1895 &ndash 7 December 1985 was an English Poet, Translator and Novelist.

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-. Carl Darling Buck ( October 2, 1866 - February 8, 1955) American Philologist, was born in Bucksport Maine. 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^[20] lists the possible root as *bher-, from which Latin ferio, "strike". This corresponds to Julius Pokorny’s *bher-(3), “scrape, cut. Julius Pokorny ( 12 June 1887 – 8 April 1970) was a scholar of the Celtic languages, particularly Irish, and a supporter ” 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. In Greek mythology, Persephone ( Kore or Cora) was the embodiment of the Earth's fertility at the same time that she was the Queen of the Underworld 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. John Chadwick ( 21 May 1920 &ndash 24 November 1998) was an English linguist and classical scholar most This article is about the Greek geographical feature and town . . the classical Perse. . . daughter of Oceanus. Ocean (Ὠκεανός was believed to be the world-ocean in Classical antiquity, which the ancient Romans and Greeks considered to be . . ; whether it may be further identified with the first element of Persephone is only speculative. ”

A Greek folk etymology connected the name of the Fars people, whom they called the Persai. layout and formatting it should ensure no clashes with the top of the infobox The native name, however has always had an -a- in Iranian. Herodotus^[21]recounts this story, devising a foreign son, Perses, from whom the Persians took the name. Herodotus of Halicarnassus ( Greek: Hēródotos Halikarnāsseús) was a Greek Historian who lived in the 5th century BC ( 484 BC&ndash Apparently the Persians themselves^[22] 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^[23] that Perseus is a Semitic name, from p-r-s, "to cut. Cyrus Herzl Gordon (1908 - March 30 2001 was an American scholar of Near Eastern cultures and ancient languages " 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. Bellerophon (βελλεροφῶν or Bellerophontes (βελλεροφόντης was a Hero of Greek mythology, "the greatest hero and In Greek mythology, Pegasus ( Greek: Πήγασος, Pégasos, 'strong' was a winged horse that was the son of Poseidon, in his role A culture hero is a Mythological Hero specific to some group ( cultural, ethnic, racial, religious, etc The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere 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. Giovanni Boccaccio's Genealogia deorum gentilium, known in English as On the Genealogy of the Gods of the Gentiles, is a Mythography 27) identifies Pegasus as the steed of Perseus, and Pierre Corneille places Perseus upon Pegasus in Andromède. Pierre Corneille ( June 6, 1606 – October 1, 1684) was a French tragedian who was one of the three great seventeenth Century French ^[24]

Modern uses of the theme

• The legend of Perseus was the basis for the 1981 film Clash of the Titans. Events January 19 - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleaguered concurrent United Artists. Clash of the Titans is a 1981 Fantasy and Mythology movie based on the myth of Perseus. Perseus was played by Harry Hamlin, who also voiced Perseus in the 2007 video game God of War II. Harry Robinson Hamlin (born October 30, 1951) is an American film and television Actor, known for his role as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film God of War II is a Hack and slash action-adventure Video game and the sequel to the 2005 game God of War for the PlayStation

• In Hermann Melville's Moby-Dick, the narrator asserts that Perseus was the first whaleman, when he killed Ceto to save Andromeda. Herman Melville (August 1 1819 &ndash September 28 1891 was an American novelist Short story writer Essayist and poet Moby-Dick is an 1851 Novel by Herman Melville. The story tells the adventures of the wandering sailor Ishmael and his voyage on the whaleship ^[25]

• Percy (Perseus) Jackson is the title character in the popular childrens series, Percy Jackson & The Olympians. Percy Jackson & The Olympians is a series of adventure books written by Rick Riordan, based on Greek mythology. He is a son of Poseidon. In Greek mythology, Poseidon ( Greek:; Latin: Neptūnus) was the god of the Sea and as "Earth-Shaker"

• Perseus is the name of a high-end retail clothing store in the game Grand Theft Auto 4.

Notes

References

• Kerenyi, Karl, 1959. One of the founders of modern studies in Greek mythology, Károly (Carl Karl Kerényi ( January 19, 1897 &ndash April 14 1973 The Heroes of the Greeks.
• Perseus in classical literature and art

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic