The Roman author Ovid describes the mortal Medusa as a beautiful maiden seduced by Poseidon in a temple of Athena. While these stories sound fantastical today, to the ancient Greeks they were quasi-historical. Myths, as well as the stories recorded by Homer and Hesiod, were considered part of a lost heroic past when men and women interacted with heroes, gods, and the supernatural.
Tales from this period were repeated in every medium; the evidence from Greece presents a world saturated with heroes and monsters in poetry, prose, and art. As such, Medusa was not just a fantastical beast, but part of a shared past and present in the minds of ancient viewers.
She signified a historical menace—the story of Perseus vanquishing and harnessing her energy was not just a story, but a chapter in the shared allegorical and historical record of the Greeks. Just as Medusa exists in multiple types of stories in the mythological record, she is also portrayed in multiple ways in ancient art.
Her appearance changes drastically through the centuries, but she is always recognizable due to her striking frontality. It is rare in Greek art for a figure to face directly out, but in almost all representations of Medusa, despite style and medium, she stares ahead and uncompromisingly confronts the viewer.
The term gorgoneion refers to the head and face of Medusa, which was used often as a decorative motif. It is a prolific symbol of her particular power that appears in architecture , vase painting , and metalwork. The gorgoneion was a pervasive image in temple decoration of the Archaic period ca.
Perhaps the largest example comes from Temple C built ca. In Sicily, southern Italy, and mainland Greece, temples were decorated with numerous antefixes ornamental terracotta roof tile covers that bore gorgoneia During this time, Medusa is depicted as a monster; she has a round face, wide eyes, a beard, and a gaping mouth with an extended tongue and gnashing, sharp teeth Medusa remains a popular image on later architectural components, but her form is more specifically human and female.
She loses the frightful teeth and beard, but is still recognizable Greek vases, cups, and related terracotta objects sometimes included a decorative gorgoneion as well. In some cases it was painted at the bottom of a drinking vessel Pieces from the seventh and sixth centuries B.
The circular shape of many of these ceramics offers a particularly appropriate space to depict the rotund face of the Archaic Gorgon; it is outrageous, with oversized features that combine the feminine curled hair and earrings with the masculine beard. She is present as the central decoration on many vases Just as in architecture , these late fourth- and third-century B. Gorgons evolve from the grotesque to the feminine but retain their specific frontal quality.
The fifth century B. Perfection and beauty became the standards of this new Classical style, and Medusa, despite her role as a monster, was not exempt. Medusa is truly ubiquitous—she is represented not only in architecture and pottery, but also in metalwork.
Her head is a common ornament on the handles of bronze vessels The circular shape and protective qualities of her countenance also lend themselves to jewelry; she appears on earrings, pendants, and rings The Gorgon is also reproduced on armor.
More commonly, the gorgoneion is the central motif on the aegis of Athena. Depictions of the goddess in both vase painting The most renowned sculpture of Athena, the gold and ivory Athena Parthenos that once stood in the Parthenon, included two gorgoneia: one on her aegis and one on her shield. The presence of Medusa on armor reinforces the idea that her presence held significant power to protect the wearer against enemies.
The gorgoneion is not the only artistic representation of Medusa; she is also shown in scenes illustrating the adventures of Perseus. A monumental example of this type is the central decoration of the early sixth-century B. Temple of Artemis on Corfu, though interestingly this depiction leaves out Perseus and the beheading. In , he found the secret: a gigantic subterranean cistern, beautifully carved and replete with the Medusas pictured above.
In Greek mythology, Medusa was one of the Gorgon monsters, usually depicted with wings—and, of course, a head of snakes. Because she was the only mortal among the three Gorgons, her killer, Perseus, was able to slay her by cutting off her head.
Many versions of the story say that her severed head, which could turn you to stone if you looked at it, became part of the shield Athena carried. The heads are perhaps the most striking sight in the cistern, whose dark passages were cleaned out in , when the city rem oved dirty water and tons of mud. The most reliable out of the earliest ones is found in the Library of Apollodorus.
This account of the myth was written around the first or second century CE. Its importance lies in the fact that Apollodorus did not attempt to change the myth but seems to have recorded details from multiple sources.
This version is more elegant, but it makes many new additions to the myth that are not found in older versions of the story. Probably there were several oral traditions and versions of the story. Apollodorus and Ovid simply brought together some of these stories in one single, more or less, coherent narrative. The two of them produced three daughters, known as the Gorgons.
Among those three, Medusa was the only mortal. No explanation is given for this strange phenomenon. Phorkys and Keto also produced another set of triplets, the Graie, as well as other monsters and deities.
It is certainly not a coincidence that both the Gorgons and the Graie were sets of three sisters. Also the giant Geryon, the grandson of Medusa, had three heads or three bodies according to different sources.
According to Ovid, Medusa was initially a beautiful young woman. This was seen as a great hubris towards the goddess whose sacred space was polluted. As is common with Greek gods , Athena directed her anger towards poor mortal Medusa who was not responsible for these events and was the true victim.
In both cases, however, the result was the same. In the end, Athena turned Medusa into a figure of horror, a Gorgon with venomous snakes instead of hair. Her face was so ugly that whoever looked at her turned into stone.
The key person in the story, other than Medusa herself, is Perseus. His story begins when Zeus mated with Danae in the form of a rain of gold. Out of this union, the legendary hero Perseus was born. Then he invited Perseus to the wedding and asked for horses as wedding gifts from all guests. At the time, horses were an extremely expensive gift. Imagine being invited to a wedding where you are expected to bring a new car as a gift. Perseus responded to the extraordinary request with sarcasm.
Obviously, Polydektes had knowledge of who Medusa powers and hoped that she would kill Perseus, thus allowing him to marry Danae unopposed. This part of the story is a bit weird as it appears to suggest that Polydektes intentionally trapped Perseus. However, it actually feels more like Perseus was the one who trapped himself and Polydeyktes simply took advantage of his mistake. It is also weird that Perseus accepts his fate without challenging it.
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