Benvenuto Cellini, Perseus with the head of Medusa, 1545-1554, Piazza della Signoria, Florence, Italy. In Ovid’s telling, Perseus describes Medusa’s punishment by Minerva (Athena) as just and well earned. In a late version of the Medusa myth, related by the Roman poet Ovid, Medusa was originally a ravishingly beautiful maiden, “the jealous aspiration of many suitors,” but because Poseidon had raped her in Athena’s temple, the enraged Athena transformed Medusa’s beautiful hair to serpents and made her face so terrible to behold that the mere sight of it would turn onlookers to stone.

Head of Medusa, Second half-second century, Tepidarium of Dar Zmela house, Sousse Archaeological Museum, Sousse, Tunisia. Traditionally, she is described as a winged human female with venomous snakes instead of hair, possessing the simple yet potent ability to turn those who gazed upon her face into stone. In Ancient Greek, her name translates to “guardian” or “protectress.” Typically depicted as a Gorgon monster, attempts have been made in contemporary contexts to offer a different perspective on Medusa. Medusa, a creation of Greek mythology, stood as one of its most fearsome entities.

Betmedusa