His mother was Danae, the daughter of Acrisius, king of Argos. Perseus was a son of Zeus, the ruler of the Greek gods. Perseus’ name became associated with the powerful Perseid dynasty, which included not only many Mycenaean kings but also famous heroes such as Heracles.

Located in central Greece (in the northeast corner of the Peloponnese), this was one of the most important cities in Greek mythology. In ancient and modern iconography, he is often shown holding the head of Medusa, which he wielded to turn his enemies to stone.įollowing his exploits, Perseus built the city of Mycenae. PronunciationĪn early hero and a famous slayer of monsters, Perseus was usually represented with the weapons and artifacts he received from the gods to fight Medusa: an unbreakable sword, a helmet of invisibility, a mirror shield, winged sandals, and a magic satchel. Howe has argued that the name and the hero were invented later, perhaps during the Archaic Period (ca. Martin Nilsson confidently dated Perseus and his myths to the Bronze Age (ca. Įxperts also disagree on when the name and its bearer originated. Other scholars have suggested that his name is connected with the underworld goddess Persephone or even with the Hittite war god Pirwa. Scholars in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries often believed the name was derived from the Greek verb πέρθειν ( perthein, 'to sack, destroy'), combined with the ending -eus, which is common in many early Greek names ( Theseus, Prometheus, etc.): Perseus’ name is thus translated as “the destroyer.”

An ancient folk etymology connected the name “Perseus” with the Persians, as he was sometimes said to have been their ancestor.

The etymology of Perseus’ name is obscure.

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