Who killed Medusa?

Perseus set out with the aid of the gods, who provided him with divine tools. While the Gorgons slept, the hero attacked, using Athena's polished shield to view the reflection of Medusa's awful face and avoid her petrifying gaze while he beheaded her with a harpe, an adamantine sword.

Why did Perseus slay Medusa?

Because the gaze of Medusa turned all who looked at her to stone, Perseus guided himself by her reflection in a shield given him by Athena and beheaded Medusa as she slept. He then returned to Seriphus and rescued his mother by turning Polydectes and his supporters to stone at the sight of Medusa's head.

Why Medusa was killed?

Medusa was seduced by Neptune (Poseidon) in a temple to Minerva (Athena), and in revenge, Minerva turned Medusa's beautiful head of hair into snakes. As she was both mortal and had the ability to turn men to stone, Perseus was sent to cut off her head.

Who was Medusa in love with?

Medusa and Poseidon engaged in a love affair and would have two children together, but not before Athena discovered the illicit affair. When Athena discovered the affair, she was enraged and immediately cursed Medusa by taking away her beauty.

Who was Medusa pregnant with?

Since Medusa was the only one of the three Gorgons who was mortal, Perseus was able to slay her while looking at the reflection from the mirrored shield he received from Athena. During that time, Medusa was pregnant by Poseidon.

Why did Athena Help Perseus Kill Medusa? - (Greek Mythology Explained)

Was Medusa male or female?

Medusa was a beautiful woman who was raped, killed and beheaded by various gods. However even in the face of tragedy and disgrace, the Medusa was portrayed as meaningful. Following the moment her head was removed, a Pegasus flew out of her body, representing the birth of beauty.

What was the real story of Medusa?

The snake-haired Medusa does not become widespread until the first century B.C. The Roman author Ovid describes the mortal Medusa as a beautiful maiden seduced by Poseidon in a temple of Athena. Such a sacrilege attracted the goddess' wrath, and she punished Medusa by turning her hair to snakes.

Did Poseidon and Medusa have a child?

From the blood that spurted from her neck sprang Chrysaor and Pegasus, her two sons by Poseidon.

Why did Athena punish Medusa and not Poseidon?

Medusa was punished by Athena because she couldn't punish Poseidon, who was a deity that outranked her.

What does a Medusa tattoo mean?

What does the Medusa tattoo mean? “The Medusa tattoo can mean many things, but it's generally a symbol of survival, strength, and overcoming assault,” says tattoo artist Ruby Rose. “Medusa has become a figure of protection to women who have experienced sexual assault or assault on some level, particularly by men.”

Who is Poseidon's wife?

Amphitrite, in Greek mythology, the goddess of the sea, wife of the god Poseidon, and one of the 50 (or 100) daughters (the Nereids) of Nereus and Doris (the daughter of Oceanus). Poseidon chose Amphitrite from among her sisters as the Nereids performed a dance on the isle of Naxos.

Is Medusa based on a real person?

The short answer is no, medusa was not real. For someone who has been depicted as a monster with poisonous snakes for hair, having the ability to turn men into stone, it may seem evident that Medusa was not a real historical figure.

What did Poseidon do after seeing Medusa?

Poseidon (Neptune), god of the sea, also noticed the girl – Medusa – and decided she would be his. Fleeing from him, Medusa came to the temple of Athena (Minerva), goddess of wisdom. Poseidon captured Medusa in the temple and violated her.

Who did Perseus fall in love with?

Perseus and his wife Andromeda happily settled in Tiryns and became the parents of seven sons and one daughter. According to Mythology, the descendants of Perseus ruled Mycenae, the most powerful town of Peloponnese in the Mycenaean times.

Why did Poseidon assault Medusa?

In fact, she was gorgeous and attracted the attention of the sea god Poseidon. There was a problem though; Medusa had taken an oath of chastity in order to serve the virgin goddess Athena in her temple. Instead of taking no for an answer, Poseidon brutally attacked and raped Medusa inside of Athena's temple.

Why is Athena angry at Medusa?

According to Apollodorus' version of the myth, Athena was angry with Medusa because she had claimed to be more beautiful than the goddess. 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.

How did Poseidon get Medusa pregnant?

So, when Poseidon raped Medusa she became pregnant. When her head was chopped off by Perseus, her children came to be. Pegasus and Chrysaor sprung from the severed neck of Medusa.

Why do Athena and Poseidon hate each other?

Athena bested Poseidon by producing an olive tree on the Acropolis. Poseidon also raped Medusa—a mortal who had the reputation of being beautiful—in Athena's temple, desecrating it. Athena could not do anything to her uncle, so she took vengeance on Medusa by turning her into a woman with snakes on her head.

Why was Athena jealous of Medusa and Poseidon?

In fact, Athena was jealous of Medusa's beauty and lustrous hair. Poseidon ravaged her and took what she held dearly, her purity. Athena, outraged by this incident, cursed Medusa and turned her wonderful hair into venomous snakes, her beautiful face turned so ugly that any man who gazed upon would turn to stone.

How many wives did Poseidon have?

Although Poseidon had a large host of lovers and many children by these women, he only had one official wife: Amphitrite, one of the Nereids. Poseidon and his wife had several offspring, including the well-known sea creature Triton.

Who is Poseidon's most famous child?

Is Athena Poseidon's Daughter?

She was the daughter of Zeus, produced without a mother, so that she emerged full-grown from his forehead. There was an alternative story that Zeus swallowed Metis, the goddess of counsel, while she was pregnant with Athena, so that Athena finally emerged from Zeus.

Why Medusa is a female?

In Ovid's telling, she was once a beautiful maiden. But after Poseidon, the god of the sea, raped her in the temple of Athena, the goddess sought revenge for what she viewed as an act of defilement. Rather than punishing Poseidon, Athena transformed his victim, Medusa, into a hideous monster.

What happened to Medusa when she died?

For Medusa was pregnant at the time of her death, and when Perseus severed her head, her two unborn children, Chrysaor and Pegasus, suddenly sprang from her neck.

What did Medusa originally look like?

The earliest portrayals of Medusa show a grotesque part human, part animal creature with wings and boar-like tusks. By the fifth century BCE, that figure from Greek myth began to morph into an alluring seductress, shaped by the idealization of the body in Greek art.