Pegasus: The Majestic White Horse of Olympus

Ancient Origins

Pegasus is the majestic flying horse found in Greek mythology. This creature is traditionally depicted as a pure white horse with wings. The father of Pegasus is said to be the god of the sea, Poseidon, whilst its mother was the Gorgon Medusa. Pegasus is best known for its association with the heroes Perseus and Bellerophon. In the story of Perseus’ slaying of Medusa, one can find the narration of Pegasus’ birth. This winged horse later became the mount of Bellerophon, and can be found in the stories about this hero’s exploits, including the slaying of the chimera, and his flight to Mount Olympus.

 Hesiod's Theogony
In Hesiod's Theogony, it is written that “with her [Medusa] the god of the Sable Locks [Poseidon] lay in a soft meadow among the spring flowers”. The union between Medusa and Poseidon resulted in Pegasus and Chrysaor, who were born when Medusa was decapitated by the hero Perseus,

 “And when Perseus cut off her head from her neck, out sprang great Chrysaor and the horse Pegasus. He was so named because he was born beside the waters of Oceanus, while the other was born with a golden sword in his hands.”

Perseus with the head of Medusa, Benvenuto Cellini (1554) (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Hesiod also mentions that after Pegasus was born, the horse flew off to Mount Olympus, where it came to live in Zeus’ palace. There, Pegasus was given the job of carrying the god’s thunder and lightning. Alternatively, the stories in Greek mythology suggest that Pegasus spent some time on earth before flying to Mount Olympus. During this time, Pegasus served two heroes – Perseus and Bellerophon.

 Following the death of Medusa, Perseus is said to have been travelling home when he caught sight of a maiden chained to a rock. This was Andromeda, the daughter of the King and Queen of Ethiopia. Andromeda’s mother had angered Poseidon by boasting that her daughter was more beautiful than even the Nereids. The god then punished the people of Ethiopia by first sending a flood, and then a sea monster to terrorize them. The only way to appease Poseidon was to sacrifice Andromeda, which was the reason for her being chained to a rock.

Pegasus emerges from the body of Medusa. ‘The Perseus Series: The Death of Medusa I’ by Edward Burne-Jones (Public Domain)

Perseus offered to rescue the princess, and deal with the monster, provided that he be given Andromeda’s hand in marriage. The king agreed to this, and when the monster came to claim the princess, it was turned to stone by Perseus with the severed head of Medusa. The connection between Pegasus and Andromeda may be seen in the sky, where their constellations can be found side by side.

Perseus saving Andromeda, 1596, Gemäldegalerie, Berlin. (Public Domain)

Bellerophon and Pegasus
Pegasus was also the mount of Bellerophon, who came to possess the flying horse during his quest against the chimera. According to one story, the hero had visited the city of Tiryns, where Proetus was king. The queen, Stheneboea, is said to have fallen in love with Bellerophon, though the hero rejected her advances. Feeling humiliated, Stheneboea went to her husband, and accused the hero of trying to seduce her. The enraged Proetus sent Bellerophon to his father-in-law, Iobates, the King of Lycia, with a letter. In the letter, the king was asked to kill the messenger.

 Instead of putting Bellerophon to death, however, Iobates decided to dispatch the hero on a quest to kill the chimera, believing that he would not survive the encounter. To prepare for this quest, Bellerophon is said to have consulted the Corinthian seer, Polyeidos, who advised him to seek out Pegasus. In one version of the myth, Polyeidos knew where Pegasus alighted to drink, and shared the information with Bellerophon, thus allowing him to tame it. In another version, it was Poseidon (Bellerophon’s secret father) who brought Pegasus to him. The most popular version of the story, however, is that it was Athena who brought Pegasus to Bellerophon. With the help of Pegasus, Bellerophon succeeded in slaying the chimera.

Bellerophon on Pegasus spears the Chimera, on an Attic red-figure epinetron, 425–420 BC. (CC BY-SA 2.5)

Over time, Bellerophon’s pride grew, and he aspired to scale the heights of Mount Olympus on the back of Pegasus to take his place amongst the immortals. Zeus was aware of the hero’s ambition, and sent a gadfly to sting Pegasus. Bellerophon lost his balance, and fell back to earth. Pegasus, however, continued the journey to Mount Olympus, and went on to live in Zeus’ palace, and was given the task of carrying the god’s thunder and lightning.

Bellerophon riding Pegasus (1914) (Public Domain)

Top image: Pegasus. (kingofwallpapers.com)

By Wu Mingren

Archaeologists Unearth Marble Head of Medusa at Roman Ruins in Turkey

Ancient Origins

Archaeologists in Turkey have unearthed a marble head of Medusa, the legendary gorgon from Greek mythology with snakes in place of hair who could turn any person to stone with just her gaze.  The ancient relic was discovered in the 2,000-year-old archaeological ruins of Antiochia ad Cragum on Mount Cragus in Anatolia, Turkey.
Live Science reports that the head of Medusa was not part of a statue, but was likely incorporated into the pediment of a building, which is believed to have been a small temple.

The marble head of Medusa discovered at Antiochia ad Cragum in Turkey. Credit: Michael Hoff, Hixson-Lied professor of art history, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The Legend of Medusa

The earliest known record about the myth of Medusa and the Gorgons can be found in Hesiod’s Theogony. According to this ancient author, the three sisters, Sthenno, Euryale and Medusa were the children of Phorcys and Ceto, and lived “beyond famed Oceanus at the world’s edge hard by Night”. Of the three, only Medusa was said to be mortal, whilst Sthenno and Euryale were immortal. In addition, Medusa is the most famous of the three, and the story of her demise is also mentioned in passing by Hesiod.
Although Hesiod gives an account of Medusa’s origins and the death of Medusa at the hands of Perseus, he does not say more about her. By contrast, a more comprehensive account of Perseus and Medusa can be found in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. In this work, Ovid describes Medusa as originally being a beautiful maiden. Her beauty caught the eye of Poseidon, who desired her and proceeded to ravage her in Athena’s shrine. The goddess then sought vengeance by transforming Medusa’s hair into snakes, so that anyone who gazed at her directly would be turned into stone.

Perseus with the Head of Medusa after he had slain her, by Sebastiano Ricci (Wikimedia Commons)

Medusa as a Force of Protection

Although Medusa is commonly regarded as a monster, her head is often seen as a protective amulet that would keep evil away. Thus, the image of Medusa’s head can be seen in numerous Greek and subsequent Roman artifacts such as shields, breastplates, mosaics, and statues. There are also numerous coins that bear not only the imagery of Perseus holding the head of Medusa, but also the head in its own right.

• The Legend of Medusa and the Gorgons
• Perseus: Powerful Demigod with Mighty Weapons
• Mycenae, the Ancient city founded by Perseus

Caravaggio’s Medusa. Photo source: Wikimedia.

The Ancient City of Antiochia ad Cragum

The marble Medusa head was discovered in the ruins of the ancient city known as Antiochia ad Cragum, which was founded in around 170 BC by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, a Greek king of the Seleucid Empire.

“There still stand substantial remains of baths, a market, a colonnaded street with gateway, a large early Christian basilica, monumental tombs, and a temple, along with several unidentified structures,” reports the Antiochia ad Cragum Archaeological Research Project. “Antiochia is mentioned by several ancient sources as an important Roman commercial center and during the Byzantine era the city was a seat of a Christian bishopric.”

Some ruins at Antiochia ad Cragum (Public domain)

Michael Hoff, a University of Nebraska–Lincoln art historian and director of the excavations, told Live Science, that the finding is surprising since the image of Medusa would have been considered idolatrous by the Christians, who later came to settle at the site. Anything considered pagan was typically smashed into pieces, but somehow the Medusa head survived the destruction.
Featured image: Head of Medusa by Peter Paul Rubens (Wikimedia Commons)
By April Holloway