![]() Medusa’s siblings included the other two Gorgons, Stheno and Euryale, as well as the perpetually ancient Graiae. Medusa’s parents, Phorcys and Ceto, were usually thought to have been among the offspring of Gaia. Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain # Family Gorgon head on terracotta tile, South Italy (c. By the fifth century BCE, however, Medusa and the Gorgons were increasingly depicted as beautiful women in the visual arts as in literature. Depictions of this Gorgon head were often believed to be “apotropaic,” meaning they could ward off evil. In addition to being snake-haired and winged, she was often pictured with fangs and a wide, menacing face. In ancient art, Medusa was originally depicted as a hideous monster. Pindar, an early Greek poet who lived in the fifth century BCE, described Medusa as “fair-cheeked.” 7 # Iconography Aeschylus, for example, in his fifth-century BCE tragedy Prometheus Bound, described them as “three winged sisters, the snake-haired Gorgons, loathed of mankind, whom no one of mortal kind shall look upon and still draw breath.” 6 It was said that anybody who looked upon Medusa (or her sisters) was immediately turned to stone.Īccording to many sources, however, Medusa was beautiful as well as terrifying. In most ancient sources, Medusa and the Gorgons were imbued with a terrifying appearance. 3 Other authors have proposed still more remote dwelling places, including the obscure Gorgonean Plains near Cisthene in Asia Minor 4 and the island of Sarpedon. ![]() According to the seventh-century BCE poet Hesiod, they could be found “beyond glorious Ocean in the frontier land towards Night.” 2 Later sources, however, usually placed them in Libya. ![]() They lived together in a remote part of the world. Medusa and her sisters were called the Gorgons. In one of his poems, Pindar applied the epithet euparaos (“fair-cheeked”) to Medusa. This root also appears in other Greek names, including Medea, Medon, and Diomedes. The name Medusa was likely derived from the Greek verb medein (“to guard, protect”). Medusa’s head was finally given to the goddess Athena, becoming part of the armor she wore into battle. He then used her severed head as a weapon during his travels, turning his enemies to stone. With the help of several gods, Perseus tracked Medusa down to her remote lair and beheaded her. Medusa was eventually killed by Perseus, one of Zeus’ heroic sons. But the young Medusa offended Athena and was therefore cursed to be a terrible monster, forever hunted by men. Many later versions of the myth claimed that she was once a beautiful maiden loved by Poseidon. Medusa was often depicted as a terrifying winged female with snakes instead of hair. It was said that anyone who looked directly at her was immediately turned to stone. Medusa, the daughter of the sea gods Phorcys and Ceto, was the most feared of the Gorgons. In many later traditions, however, Medusa was a beautiful maiden. In the earliest sources, Medusa was depicted as a hideous monster.
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