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Medusa is a Gorgon from Greek mythology that was one of the three sisters of Euryale and Stheno. These sisters comprised a race of half-snake half-woman beings known as Gorgons and Medusa was the only one of them that could be killed. She was said to be able to turn people to stone with a glance: her hair was said to be made of snakes and she has become one of the most iconic Greek monsters of all time.
Biography[]
In Greek myth, Medusa was always a monster who's mother was either Echidna the mother of monsters herself, or Ceto.
In a much later recreation of her myth by the Roman poet Ovid he completely rewrote her story into her more popular origin. Ovid's version of Medusa was not always a monster, as she was originally a ravishingly beautiful maiden, "the jealous aspiration of many suitors", priestess in Athena's temple, but when she was caught being raped by Poseidon in Athena's temple, the enraged war goddess Athena transformed Medusa's beautiful hair into serpents and made her face so terrible to behold that the mere sight of it would turn onlookers to stone.
When Medusa was killed, according to Greek mythology, by the hero Perseus, who cleverly used the metal of his shield as a mirror so as to see Medusa without making contact with her eyes, thus enabling him to combat the monster without being petrified.
According to legend, Medusa's powers functioned even after her death as her decapitated head still had the power to turn a man to stone if not kept hidden from view inside a bag.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In some adaptations, Medusa is cast as more villainous than her original version. In many Soviet adaptations of the myth, she, instead of staying in her lair, flew across Greece and turned everyone she met into stone, either due to delusionally believing that she makes them "immortal" this way or for no reason at all.
External Links[]
- Medusa on the Wikipedia
- Medusa on the Once Upon a Time Wiki.
