What is Medusa?

Medusa was one of the Gorgon sisters whose hideous, snaky-haired head Perseus severed using a mirror given him by the gods so he wouldn’t have to face her. Had he looked at her face, Medusa would have turned him to stone. Even after he had decapitated Medusa, Perseus couldn’t look at her because her head retained its petrifying power. The myth of Perseus and Medusa was one the most powerful inspiration for many artists in the ancient times, but it hasn’t lost its artistic significance to the present day either. Paintings and sculptures of the moment of beheading or Medusa’s portrait itself are famous all over the world. One of the most known art work is the Medusa shield by Caravaggio, painted at the end of the 16th century. It is exposed in the Uffizi museum in Florence. Close by the museum, in the main plaza of Firenze, there is a sculpture of Perseus.

The post What is Medusa? appeared first on interaksyonph.