Perseus in mythology. God Perseus in ancient Greek mythology, son of Zeus and Danai Sword of Perseus

Perseus grew up in the palace of King Polydectes and became a strong, slender young man. Like a star, he shone among the young men of Serif with his divine beauty; no one was equal to him in beauty, strength, dexterity, or courage.

Polydectes planned to forcibly take the beautiful Danae as his wife, but Danae hated the stern king Polydectes. Perseus stood up for his mother. Polydectes was angry and from that time on he thought only about one thing - how to destroy Perseus. Eventually, the cruel Polydectes sent Perseus to retrieve the head of the gorgon Medusa.

With Andromeda, Perseus had a daughter, Gorgophone, and six sons, including Perses, Alcaeus, Sthenelus (father of Eurystheus) and Electryon (father of Alcmene). The Perseid family was glorified by the deeds of the heroic descendants of Perseus, including the greatest hero of Greece - Hercules.

Genealogy:

Perseids: This branch is dedicated to the origins and children and descendants of Perseus and Andromeda
Rivers: This branch features the origins of Pegasus and Chrysaor, as well as his descendants.

The myths of Ancient Greece often contain biographies of heroes who were admired by poets, sculptors and painters. One has only to remember who defeated the mighty Minotaur and, thanks to Ariadne’s thread, got out of the tangled corridors of the labyrinth. It is noteworthy that Perseus, who defeated him, has no negative traits. While (in Roman mythology - Hercules) had fits of rage, and he was partial to strong drinks, and another hero - Achilles - was guided mainly by personal interests.

Perseus was so beautiful that he was sometimes compared to the gods. And his character traits include courage, dexterity and the ability to get out of difficult situations.

History of appearance

It is difficult to say when the inhabitants of the solar state, which is located in Southern Europe, came up with Perseus (by the way, many etymologists believe that this name dates back to pre-Greek times). But it is known that this character was admired by an ancient poet who died in the 8th century BC. on the island of Ios.

The future hero appeared under very unusual circumstances. The fact is that Acrisius received a prediction from the oracles: the Argive king was predetermined that he would fall at the hands of his own grandson.

It is not surprising that Acrisius tried with all his might to avoid his fate. The king hid his daughter in a prison made of stone and bronze. Thus, the princess was not only imprisoned, but also deprived of contact with men. However, the Thunderer deceived Acrisius: the Olympian liked Danaë so much that he reincarnated as golden rain and penetrated through the ceiling of the dungeon.

This plot inspired the masters of brushes and paints of the Renaissance. The artist interpreted the legend in a very original way: in the Dutchman’s painting, which is called “Danae,” there is no rain and gold coins, which caused controversy among researchers. The painting was even subjected to X-ray processing, as a result of which the original sketch was found.

After Zeus outwitted Acrisius, Danae gave birth to a baby named Perseus in due time. The girl did not hide the divine origin of her son, but the king did not want to accept the future fate, so he tried to get rid of his grandson. The owner of the crown ordered artisans to make a strong box in which Danae and Perseus were locked, and then the unfortunates were thrown into the sea. By the way, a similar plot appears in “The Tale of Tsar Saltan.”

The son of Zeus and Danae was not destined to drown in the depths of the sea, so the waves carried the box east, to the island of Serif. He was caught by an angler named Dictys. The fisherman and part-time brother of the local king Polydectes took Danae and Perseus to the royal palace, and the owner of the throne gave the guests the most cordial welcome. Polydectes showered the daughter of Acrisius and her son with gifts, counting on mutual sympathy, but the girl did not want to have a relationship with him that went beyond friendship.

Many years passed, and the ruler of Serif, hoping that Danae would become his wife, gave up and stopped seeking the princess’s favor with good. By that time, Perseus had become an adult and was able to stand up for himself and his mother, so Polydectes decided to get rid of the strengthened young man.

Perseus in mythology

In the mythology of Ancient Greece, the feat of Perseus is directly related to the murder of Medusa the Gorgon. According to legend, this is a monster with a woman’s head and hair made of snakes. And whoever dares to look Medusa in the eyes instantly turns to stone.

Polydectes decided to get rid of the son of Danae at any cost, but did not dare to confront the descendant of Zeus directly. Therefore, the king came up with a cunning plan: at the feast, the ruler of the island publicly doubted the divine origin of Perseus and asked the young man to prove his relationship with the gods. When Perseus agreed to demonstrate his power to the king, he asked him to kill the terrible Gorgon Medusa and bring her severed head.

Polydectes set a superhuman task for Danae's son, for Medusa not only easily turned living beings into stone, but also lived with two sisters. The Olympian gods helped the hero cope with the monster: thanks to them, Perseus acquired useful attributes - a magical curved sword and a polished copper shield, in which everything was reflected as in a mirror.

The hero also visited the prophetic sisters - the old women of Forkiad, who had one eye and one tooth between them. The young man stole their secret items, and Grayi was offered sandals with wings, Hades' invisibility cap, and a magic bag in exchange.

Armed from head to toe, Perseus arrived at the gorgons' refuge. The son of Danae rose into the air with the help of magic sandals and cut off Medusa's head. In order not to turn into stone, the hero looked at the reflection on Athena's shield. And then, with the help of an invisibility cap, he hid from the other gorgons.

After this, having hidden the trophy in a bag, the mythological hero went to the northwestern part of Africa: there he met the Titan Atlas, who, as punishment for the rebellion staged against the gods, had to forever prop up the firmament with his mighty shoulders. It is worth noting that Atlas, doomed to suffering, did not like uninvited guests, for he was predicted that one day the son of Zeus would appear and cause him trouble.

When Perseus introduced himself to the unfortunate son of the thunderer who cut off the head of Medusa the Gorgon, he did not believe him and called him a liar. Then the young man decided to prove the veracity of his words and pulled out a trophy from his bag. Atlas, looking at the head of the Gorgon, immediately turned into a block of stone, which is now located between Marrakech and Tunisia.

Having rested, the hero went to Polydectes. As Perseus traveled in the heat, the Gorgon's blood soon leaked from the bag. The drops that fell on the hot ground immediately turned into rattlesnakes. Over time, they multiplied and destroyed all life that was in those parts, turning the area into a deserted desert. Fortunately, at that time Perseus was already far away.

The hero was heading to Ethiopia. On the way to the city of Joppa, which is located on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, he managed to free the royal daughter Andromeda, who was doomed to certain death: the girl was given to be devoured by a sea monster. Perseus dealt with Andromeda's fiancé and took the unfortunate woman as his wife. After killing the sea monster, Perseus washed himself of the blood in a pond, after which the water acquired a scarlet hue.

Then the young man finally arrived in Serif, where he found his mother in the temple: Danae was hiding from the persecution of King Polydectes. Perseus showed the head of Medusa to the owner of the crown and his companions, after which they all turned into stone blocks. According to another version, the young man turned all the inhabitants of Serif into stone. In fact, that island is very rocky - this fact became the background for playing out the plot by comic poets.

Later, Perseus and his mother decided to go to visit Acrisius, who, remembering the prediction, did not allow them to enter the door. But, as they say, you cannot escape from fate: many years later, the fateful prediction came true when Perseus participated in a sports competition and accidentally threw a disc towards the audience. The projectile killed Acrisius. used to say that the king died after the third throw of Perseus.

Film adaptations

Directors are accustomed to delighting moviegoers not only with new ideas, but also with films based on historical or mythological subjects. Filmmakers have not ignored Perseus, so let’s look at the films where this hero appears.

"Clash of the Titans" (film, 1981)

The action adventure film directed by Desmond Davis won the attention of viewers because it presented a free interpretation of ancient Greek myths: if in legends snakes are born from the blood of Medusa, then in myths - scorpions. In addition, the painting shows how Perseus turns Phineus to stone, which was not in the painting. According to the plot, the mortal son of Zeus - Perseus - must save the beautiful Andromeda from magical spells and kill the Kraken. The main character has courage, determination, and loyal friends - the owl Bubbo and the winged horse Pegasus. The roles were played by Harry Hamlin, Ursula Andress, Claire Bloom and other show business stars.

"Clash of the Titans" (film, 2010)

Director Louis Leterrier shot a remake of the film of the same name, seasoning it with special effects. The filmmaker also decided not to base it on the original and came up with his own concept. The picture begins with a fisherman catching a casket in which the dead body of a woman with a living baby in her hands is hidden. Spyros and his wife decide to raise the boy and name him Perseus. When the rescued young man grew up, he learned that the gods were preparing a war. The brilliant cast of the film included Jason Flemyng and other film stars.

"Wrath of the Titans" (film, 2012)

Director Jonathan Liebesman continued the storyline and filmed a spin-off for Clash of the Titans. This time the film tells how, after defeating the sea monster, Perseus forgot about his heroic deeds, lived a quiet fishing life and raised his son. However, the walls of Tartarus began to crumble, so the thunderer Zeus asked Perseus to save the world from the coming chaos. Danny Huston and others were added to the cast.

In the 2010 film Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, the main character was named after Perseus. True, the real Perseus was descended from Zeus, and the cinematic hero was the son of.

The king of Argos, Acrisius, had only one child - the daughter of Danae. The oracle predicted to Acrisius that his own grandson would kill him. Hearing this prophecy, Acrisius imprisoned Danae in a copper tower, guarded by fierce dogs, so that no man could approach her. But the god Zeus, who loved Danae, overcame all the obstacles. He came down to her in the form of golden rain, and Danae gave birth to a son from the king of the gods - Perseus.

Danae. Painting by Rembrandt, 1636-1643

Acrisius, having learned about this, did not believe in the paternity of Zeus. Since the birth of Perseus, according to the oracle, threatened him with mortal danger, Acrisius put Danae and her son in a wooden box and threw him into the sea. Near the island of Serif, the box was caught in the net by the fisherman Dictys, who took the rescued Danae and Perseus to his brother, the king of Serif, Polydectes. Perseus grew up in his house.

Years later, Polydectes decided to forcibly make Danae his wife. The matured Perseus opposed this. Then Polydectes, for the sake of appearance, announced that he would woo Hippodamia, the daughter of the hero Pelops, and asked all his associates to bring him gifts that he could give to his bride. Perseus, delighted that the king would no longer harass his mother, promised to get Polydectes any gift - “if necessary, then the head of the Gorgon Medusa.”

Sinister female monsters, the Gorgons, lived at the edge of the world. Of the three Gorgon sisters, only Medusa was mortal - and the most terrible. Instead of hair, snakes moved on her head, and there were fangs sharp as daggers in her mouth. The sight of Medusa was so disgusting that anyone who glanced at her turned to stone in horror. Hearing Perseus’s rash promise, Polydectes rejoiced at the opportunity to get rid of the inconvenient young man and demanded that his word be fulfilled.

Head of Medusa. Painting by Rubens, c. 1617-1618

From the dead body of the Gorgon, the winged horse Pegasus and the warrior Chrysaor with a golden sword, whom Medusa conceived from the god Poseidon in one of the temples of Athena, soared upward. Having put the severed head into his bag, Perseus, wearing winged sandals, rushed through the air. Medusa's sisters, the gorgons Stheno and Euryale, rushed after the killer. But Hades's hat made Perseus invisible, and he escaped safely.

Jellyfish. Painter Caravaggio, 1595-1596

At sunset, Perseus flew to the palace of the titan Atlas, brother of Prometheus, who lived on the western edge of the earth. The rich Atlas owned thousands of herds of cattle, but his most valuable asset was a tree with golden apples. The goddess Themis predicted to Atlas that the son of Zeus would once steal these apples from him. This prophecy concerned one of the future labors of Hercules. But when Perseus, who flew to Atlas, also called himself the son of Zeus, the Titan suspected him of being the thief whose appearance Themis had predicted. Atlas refused Perseus hospitality and rudely demanded that he go home. As punishment for this, the hero showed the titan the head of the Gorgon, and he turned into Mount Atlas, which has since risen in the middle of the Libyan desert, supporting the sky with its peaks.

Perseus flew further east, across the Libyan Desert. A few drops of the blood of the Gorgon Medusa fell down and gave birth to poisonous snakes, which have since abounded in the Libyan sands. Having made a stop in the Egyptian Khemmis, Perseus reached Ethiopia, where he saw a naked girl chained to a rock on the seashore. Love for her arose in Perseus's soul. The girl was Andromeda, the daughter of the Ethiopian king Kepheus (Cepheus) and his wife Cassiopeia. Cassiopeia once boasted that she and her daughter were more beautiful than the Nereid water goddesses. They complained about this insult to the sea god Poseidon. Poseidon sent a flood and a terrible sea monster to the kingdom of Kepheus. The oracle told Kepheus that the only way to escape from these troubles was by sacrificing the sea monster Andromeda. The royal daughter was chained to a rock, and the Ethiopians, gathered on the shore, waited for the monster to swallow Andromeda.

Descending from the air to Kepheus and Cassiopeia standing by the sea, Perseus took an oath from them to marry Andromeda to him in exchange for her salvation. Soaring up again, Perseus put on Hades's cap, grabbed the sickle given to him by Hermes and, rushing at the monster approaching across the sea, killed him.

Perseus and Andromeda. Artist G. Vasari, 1570-1572

Kepheus and Cassiopeia held a feast in the palace in honor of the wedding of Perseus and Andromeda, but in their hearts they did not want this marriage, for their daughter had previously been promised to Kepheus’ brother, Phineus. During the feast, Phineus and his armed companions burst into the palace, demanding that the wedding be stopped and Andromeda given to him. Phineas was secretly supported by Cassiopeia, who wanted Perseus dead.

A bloody battle between Perseus and the people of Phineus began. Perseus killed many opponents in it. But since there were still many enemies left, the hero took the head of the Gorgon out of the wonderful bag and showed it to the Ethiopians who attacked him. Two hundred people, led by Phineas himself, turned into stone from this.

The god Poseidon placed the image of Kepheus and Cassiopeia among the stars. Cassiopeia, as punishment for the betrayal of Perseus, was placed in heaven in a market basket, which, due to the rotation of the starry vault, at certain times of the year turned over along with the queen sitting with her.

Andromeda and Perseus were later also ascended to heaven, but for now they left Ethiopia and arrived on the island of Serif. There the hero learned that his mother Danae had taken refuge from the violence of the treacherous king Polydectes in the temple. Perseus went to the palace where Polydectes was feasting and announced that he had brought the promised gift to the king. Pulling out the head of the Gorgon Medusa, he turned Polydectes and all his sycophants to stone. These stones are still shown on Serif, standing in a circle.

Ancient Greece existed for a very long time, and it seems that only a few people are interested in it, who like to study the Ancient World and everything connected with it, including ancient Greek mythology. However, if we look in more detail, we can see the influence that Ancient Greece had on the development of civilization, manifesting itself in various types of art.

The Origin of Myths about Ancient Greece

A myth is a set of stories that were important for culture, life and human development. It is difficult to prove whether the story actually happened, but it is also impossible to refute it. C “myth” means “tradition”, “legend”, and therefore, it is a narrative that carries a certain meaning - to convey to a person some idea or teach him something.

Tales about Ancient Greece began to take shape even before the advent of writing, and therefore were passed on from mouth to mouth. The story was told about the life of the Greeks and fictional heroes who performed feats, which the people admired. They possessed the highest power, regardless of whether it was Zeus, who was the main one among all, or Hercules, who performed feats known to everyone, or the god Perseus, who was half god, half man, but also distinguished by strength and cunning.

Ancient Greek mythology diagram

It is worth briefly saying that all mythology was divided into three stages: pre-Olympic (the world arose from Chaos and ended with the murder of Cronus, the chief of the gods), Olympian (Zeus seizes power along with his retinue of 12 gods) and heroic (the time when from the gods and heroes are born to mortals, including the god Perseus).

All gods can be divided into supreme and minor. Separately, there were muses who inspired the gods, and also highlighted lower creatures (satirs, nymphs and oras, and monsters with whom the heroes had to fight).

Gods and goddesses of ancient Greek mythology

With the help of mythology and created, invented, the Greeks tried to explain all the events that took place, be it a hurricane, torrential rain or disease.

At first, people imagined gods as terrible animals that prevented them from living well. From here such characters as the Sphinx appeared or further images began to have human faces and the following Greek gods appeared: Perseus, Aphrodite, Zeus, Hephaestus, Demeter and many others. In addition to the fact that the gods had human faces, people also attributed to them qualities (pity, mercy, envy, jealousy). The gods became immortal and communicated with people, and often entered into love relationships.

Perseus was born despite all obstacles. Once upon a time, Danai’s father was predicted that he would die at the hands of his own grandson. He had to lock his daughter in a mansion so that she could not fall in love with anyone, and she was guarded by fierce dogs. But despite everything, Danae was able to give birth to a son and named him Perseus. Whose son of the gods was he according to mythology, and how could he be born?

Zeus was able to overcome all the obstacles, coming to Danae in a very original way, in the form of golden rain, and it was from him that she gave birth to a son, Perseus. Danae's father could not survive this and decided to destroy his daughter and grandson, put them in a wooden box and threw them into the sea. Danaë and Perseus were lucky; they were saved by a fisherman and taken to his brother Polydectes, where they remained to live.

Myth of Perseus

Perseus and his mother lived for a long time with Polydectes, who once wanted to force Danae to be his wife. However, the matured Perseus was against this and directly expressed his word. Then Polydectes, as a diversion, said that he would marry someone else, and Perseus was clearly happy about this and was ready to give any gift, “if necessary, then the head of the Gorgon Medusa,” he said out loud.

Hearing these words, Polydectes sent Perseus for his head, hoping to get rid of him forever. The goddess Athena decided to help Perseus in this battle, since Medusa was her sworn enemies (the Gorgon and her two sisters). Athena gave Perseus a shield polished to a shine, which he had to look into while killing Medusa, otherwise, if he looked straight into her eyes, he would be petrified by her gaze.

Hermes also came to the rescue and gave him an adamantium sickle; it was they who had to cut off the Gorgon’s head. The god Perseus also asked for winged sandals that carried him to the place, a bag for storing the head of Medusa and an invisibility cap. Thanks to her, he escaped from the Gorgon sisters after her beheading.

Perseus traveled around the world for a long time with the head of Medusa the Gorgon, and one day he stopped in Ethiopia, where in the distance he saw a naked girl who was attached to a rock with chains. Perseus immediately fell in love with her - Andromeda, who was the daughter of Kepheus and Cassiopeia. But the sea god Poseidon brought trouble to the kingdom of Kepheus, and it was possible to escape from these troubles only by sacrificing Andromeda, who was soon to be swallowed by a sea monster.

Perseus demanded from Kepheus that if he freed her daughter, he would allow him to marry her. Perseus put on the invisibility cap, took the sickle of Hermes, killed the monster and freed his future wife. Later a great feast was held and a wedding took place. However, the parents did not want this wedding, since they had long promised their daughter to Kefei’s brother. And so Brother Phineus burst into the wedding, and the battle began. Only thanks to the fact that Perseus had the head of Medusa, he was able to destroy his enemies in one fell swoop, turning them into stone.

Reign of Perseus

Perseus and Andromeda returned to the island of Serif, where Polydectes feasted with his faithful jury while Perseus' mother took refuge in the temple from the violence. Perseus said that he had fulfilled his promise and showed that at the same moment Polydectes and all his subjects were petrified.

Together with his mother and his wife, Perseus returned to his homeland. When Danai's father learned that his grandson was alive, he disappeared from sight. But the prophecy overtook him where he did not expect it. During athletic games, Perseus threw a discus that hit grandfather Acrisius in the leg, and he died from this wound. God Perseus was very worried about this and decided to exchange kingdoms with his uncle Megapentus, he himself went to rule in Tiryns, where he built the city of Mycenae and continued to rule there for many years.

The image of Perseus in art

Ancient Greece undoubtedly had a great influence on the development of culture throughout the world. It manifests itself in different fields, be it painting, sculpture or literature. Each god is given a lot of attention, including the image of Perseus can be found in various forms of art.

It cannot be said that Perseus is the god of something (air, fire, water or other natural phenomenon). He is represented as a hero who defeated monsters, and he was a demigod, born from the god Zeus and the mortal Danae.

Since ancient times, mention of it has been found in art. This is how you can see Rembrandt’s painting dedicated to his mother Danae. Many works glorify the act of Perseus when he cut off the head of Medusa the Gorgon, as depicted in the painting by Rubens and

The sculpture “Titan Atlas” tells the story of how Perseus, who, like Hercules, was the son of Zeus, once flew to visit Atlas. The goddess Themis predicted to Atlas that he would die at the hands of the son of Zeus, and he thought that it would be Perseus, and did not accept him as a guest, but abruptly drove him away, for which Perseus showed him the head of Medusa and turned him into a stone statue.

Several paintings also tell about the meeting and rescue of Andromeda: the artist Rubens and G. Vasari created canvases dedicated to this event.

Perseus is a great hero of Greek mythology. Part 1

Perseus, Greek - son of Zeus and Danae, daughter of King Acrisius.

Perseus was a mythological hero who had no negative traits. In this respect, he is superior, for example, to Hercules, who sometimes succumbed to fits of rage and also often got drunk, or Achilles, for whom personal interests were above the interests of the entire army. Perseus was equal in beauty to the gods, distinguished by strength, dexterity and unparalleled courage, and most importantly, he always achieved success in everything.

Perseus was born under unusual circumstances. His grandfather Acrisius, the king of Argives, was predicted that he would be killed by his own grandson. To avoid this fate, Acrisius hid his daughter in an underground dungeon of stone and bronze to isolate her from contact with men. However, the supreme god Zeus outwitted Acrisius. Since he liked Danaë extremely, he entered the dungeon through the ceiling, showering with golden rain. After the allotted time, Danae gave birth to a son, whom she named Perseus. Danae did not hide the divine origin of her son, however, Acrisius decided to get rid of him. He ordered a large wooden box to be made, locked his daughter and grandson in it, hammered the box with his own hands and threw it into the sea.

However, the son of Zeus was not destined to drown like a blind kitten. The waves carried the box far to the east, to the island of Serif, where it was caught by the fisherman Dictys, brother of the local king Polydectes. He took Danae and Perseus to the royal palace, and Polydectes gave her the warmest welcome. He showered Danae and her son with attentions, counting on her gratitude and, perhaps, something more on her part. But Danae did not like his attentiveness, which turned into importunity; she wanted nothing to do with him - and certainly not the son that Polydectes wanted to have from her. Many years passed like this. Desperate to achieve his goal with good, he decided to resort to force, but by this time Perseus had already grown up and was able to stand up for himself and his mother.

Polydectes decided at any cost to get rid of Perseus, who was preventing him from speaking out against him openly; he did not risk it, fearing the wrath of the ruler of gods and people. Instead, he decided to push the young man into a rash act. Once at a feast, Polydectes doubted the divine origin of Perseus: for this, they say, words alone are not enough, this still needs to be proven, say, to perform some superhuman feat. Perseus agreed, and then Polydectes invited him to kill the terrible gorgon Medusa and bring her head.

The task was truly superhuman. Firstly, it was known that at one glance at Medusa - a winged monster with long fangs and snakes instead of hair - everyone turned to stone; secondly, it was not known where Medusa lives along with her two sisters. Only the gods could help Perseus in this matter, and since the gods love the brave, they decided to help Perseus, especially since he was the son of Zeus himself. Hermes gave him a magical curved sword, and the goddess Athena gave him a shiny copper shield in which everything was reflected as in a mirror.

In search of the gorgons, Perseus traveled through many countries and overcame many obstacles that robbers and monarchs prepared for travelers. Finally, he found himself in a dull and gloomy country, where the old grays lived, the sisters of the Gorgons, who knew the way to them. The gray had only one eye and one tooth for three. While one of them had an eye, the other two were helpless and the sighted sister had to lead them by the hand. Perseus waited for the moment when one of the faces passed the eye to the other (at that time neither of them saw anything), and snatched the eye. He returned it only after the Grays explained to him the way to the island of the Gorgons. The path to the Gorgons led past a grove in which lived friendly nymphs who gave Perseus three precious gifts: an invisibility helmet that had previously belonged to Hades, winged sandals and a magic bag that expanded or contracted depending on what was put in it. Having put on winged sandals, Perseus flew into the sky and headed west, towards the island of the Gorgons.

From a bird's eye view, Perseus saw three sleeping gorgon sisters on the shore of the island. He knew that two of them were immortal, only Medusa was mortal. But how can you recognize her? Perseus tried in vain to identify Medusa, looking at the reflection of the sisters in the shiny shield (if he had looked directly at them, he would have turned to stone). Fortunately, Hermes appeared on the scene and pointed him to the Gorgon lying near the sea. Encouraged by Hermes, Perseus flew at Medusa like an eagle at a hare.

Sensing the enemy, the snakes on Medusa’s head moved and hissed. But before Medusa could open her eyes, Perseus cut off her head with one swing of his sword, put it in his bag and flew up. Dark blood gushed from Medusa’s body, from which the giant Chrysaor and the winged horse Pegasus were born. Both immortal gorgons immediately took off to avenge the death of their sister. But Perseus, in his invisibility helmet, was already far away; his winged sandals carried him east, to Serif.

Perseus made a stop in the northwestern part of Africa, where the titan Atlas lived, who, as punishment for rebellion against the gods, was doomed to prop up the vault of heaven forever. Atlas was predicted that a visit from one of the sons of Zeus could cause him great trouble, so he did not like uninvited guests. When Perseus appeared before him, called himself the son of Zeus and said that he had defeated Medusa, Atlas called him an impudent liar and ordered him to get away. Naturally, Perseus was offended. He took the head of Medusa from his shoulder bag and, turning away, showed it to Atlas to convince him of his truthfulness. At one glance at Medusa, Atlas turned into a stone mountain, which still stretches between Marrakech and Tunisia.

Having rested, Perseus put on his sandals and continued on his way. In the hot air of North Africa, blood from Medusa's head leaked through the bag. As soon as its heavy drops fell to the ground, poisonous snakes were born from them. Over time, they multiplied so much that they destroyed all life in these parts and turned them into a sandy desert. But before this happened, Perseus was already very far away - at the very edge of the then known world, in Ethiopia.