As Karoglou points out, the majority of hybrids (half-human, half-animal monsters like sirens or Gorgons) in ancient Greece were female. She was usually represented as a winged female creature having a head of hair consisting of snakes; unlike the Gorgons, she was sometimes represented as very beautiful. I know it has a name but I can't think of it. Medusa has 11 spiritual meanings, which we look at in this article. While there have been myths about Medusa in the past, the most famous myth is her being the monster that Persuses had killed. Finally, shes a triple goddess. Installation view of Dangerous Beauty: Medusa in Classical Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (photo by the author for Hyperallergic), Terracotta pelike (jar) with Perseus beheading the sleeping Medusa, attributed to Polygnotos (Greek, 450440 BCE), terracotta, height: 18 13/16 inches, diameter: 13 1/2 inches (courtesy the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rogers Fund, 1945), Madeleine Glennonin a 2017 essay on Medusa in Ancient Greek Artfor the Met notes thatClassical and Hellenistic images of Medusa are more human, but she retains a sense of the unknown through specific supernatural details such as wings and snakes. . Medusa can be given to you as a sign and message. The story of Medusa shifted over time along with her visage. She was no longer depicted as a monster like it was written in the stories about her. Her petrifying gaze turns men into stone but only towards those who look at her hideous appearance. Her image was used in Byzantine Greece to protect pregnant women and newborns. Snakes were often connected to deception as well which reflected on the trust men put in women back in those days. Her snakes are undoubtedly one of the better-known symbols in Greek mythology. For example, a sun and moon tattoo, which you can view as a coming together of opposites and a representation of two opposing forces. Without the support of the gods, he would have been petrified like every other warrior. In other words, symbolic decapitation, is a symptom of the real dangers that women face in a culture that is anxious about the powers of masculinity. Cixous demonstrates these points by claiming Freud himself is reductive and neglects to address the female experience in the Medusa myth, thereby erasing her experience, or, symbolically decapitating her as well. link to 13 Frequently Asked Questions About Medusa. Medusa remains the. Dangerous Beauty: Medusa in Classical Art continues through January 6, 2019 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1000 Fifth Avenue, Upper East Side, Manhattan). The story of Medusa continues to provoke renewed perspectives on its symbolism including through the lens of feminism and psychoanalysis. Different regions and cultures . This is another caution sign from medusa. Medusa was the only Gorgon who was mortal; hence her slayer, Perseus, was able to kill her by cutting off her head. People often come to secure their lives with some supernatural rituals and symbols when they do not feel secure with physical protection. Your email address will not be published. Her snakes have also made her one of the most popular characters from Greek mythology, with her modern depictions being widely used in modern media. How Long Will Joe Goldbergs Rampage Be Left Unchecked? In Greek mythology, Medusa was a Gorgon, one of three monstrous sisters comprised of Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale. and rebirth and can be inked as a symbol of protection, warding off evil and keeping the wearer safe from harm. This should be a lesson to learn. She was killed by Zeusbefore he fought his father and the Titans for power. Despite her origin story being one of purity and renowned beauty, Medusa has come to connote only malevolence and her role as a gorgon, or mythical monster. 20. All three are originally described as having tusks, wings, and the infamously iconic snake hair. If you have committed to accomplishing a task, stay true to it no matter what. If you ever find yourself in Sicily, you will see the Trinacria being sold in all forms: magnets, key chains, pins, postcards and most stunning of all: ceramic Trinacria plaques that are hand-crafted by local artisans. The myth tells us that the only way to defeat Medusa is by looking at our reflections through a mirror and this tells us that we should reflect upon ourselves to defeat our darkest demons. When it comes to medusa, we have several mixed stories; however, both stories affirm the fact that medusa was very beautiful. She was likened to the modern evil eye and people believed that they needed an image of evil to ward off other evils that could affect them. One of the most complex drawings is medusa. Here we discuss Medusa as a goddess, gorgon, and icon AND we teach you 8 ways to work with her fierce energy. Medusa, who was once thought of as a boastful mortal who deserved to be turned into a monster, is now seen in a more sympathetic view by modern standards. Dangerous Beauty: Medusa in Classical Art, in a 2017 essay on Medusa in Ancient Greek Art, which you can also hear on the Mets site, From Ancient Egypt to Teotihuacn, Centuries-Old Palettes Illuminate the Role of the Painter, Tucked Away in LA For Decades, 2,000-Year-Old Roman Mosaic Returns to Italy, Manhattan DA to Seize Looted Hindu Artifact From Met Museum, Roe v. Wade Case Documents Fetch Over $600K at Auction, At the Outsider Art Fair, Passion Trumps Prestige, The Photography Show Presented by AIPAD Arrives in New York. She is an advocate of the exaltation of femininity. Medusa is the only one who is mortal and that is why the hero Perseus is sent to slay her. Medusas beheading is the ultimate offense because it involves a complete dismemberment, a permanence within the male gaze, and a double darkness. According to Hlne Cixous article The Laugh of Medusa, she claims that. The myths and stories about medusa are true. The Medusa symbol might have a vary People with great academic achievements are believed to be possessed with medusa. Medusa represents feminine power. This was what attracted Poseidon to her. Medusa slept with Poseidon in Athena's temple knowing the consequences, but did it anyways therefore Athena was right about punishing her. (The Etruscans especially used to put her symbol on homes and temples to ward off evil spirits.) Seventeen contemporary artists of the African Diaspora explore how movement and migration shape their artistic practices and lives. What does Medusa Symbolize? She has the divine ability to keep your mind sane as a female. Medusa represents feminine power. As she became more and more attractive, Medusa's allure became a symbol of her power in the world, a might that was often distinctly feminine. It means that she is a goddess that inspires people to be creative which brought forth the science of art. The stories of ancient Greek and Roman mythology have, over the years, been rediscovered, repurposed, and reinterpreted in more modern contexts. Doniger claims that beheading equals the release or termination of sexuality, male or female. Doniger submits that through the sexualization of the female head, (i.e. Did the monstrous Gorgon bear any children that 13 Frequently Asked Questions About Medusa. In it, a nude Perseus proudly presents the dead Gorgons head in one hand, grasping some of the hair that writhes with a few subtle serpents. She is also seen as a protective figure, and her head is often used as a symbol of strength and power. It looks particularly sexy on the back or thigh area, where the tattoo will draw attention to feminine body parts. The consequence led to a lifetime of living beneath her powers. I do remember exactly, but as far as I remember, it was explained as she was born mortal, then died, and gave birth through this (the rebirth portion). Hence, Medusa's tale has served as a metaphor for power and bravery, particularly for women who have experienced s*xual harassment. The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling. The story of Medusa is such a famous Greek myth told in today's world, both to kids and adults alike. [5] Protection [ edit] Since Ancient Greece, the snake-haired Gorgon has been a sexualized symbol of womens rage. Medusa was one of three daughters born with extraordinary beauty and stunning hair. Nowadays Medusas can be seen as a symbol of revenge against the male gaze. Hellenism (Greek: Ellinisms, Latin: Hellenismus), also less frequently called Olympianism (Greek: Olympianisms, Latin: Olympianismus) or Dodekatheism (Greek: Dodekathesms, Latin: Duodecimdeismus), is the traditional polytheistic and animistic orthopraxic religion, lifestyle, aesthetics, and ethos of the ancient Graeco-Roman world, and is the indigenous religion of the common Greek and Latin cultural sphere. The Hamsa is a talisman from the ancient Middle East. My name is Marlin Davis and I am passionate about history of all sorts. Medusa Tattoo Designs 1. It should help us to remain true to our words. People often turn into stone when faced with their own difficulties and inner demons. If it's something you want, I don't see a problem with it. Dot-work Medusa tattoos might symbolize the connection to the religious part of Athena's story. In order to unpack the feminist implication of the mythology, lets begin with the narrative of her story. The symbol offers protection from harm caused by the evil eye. feelings originating in powerful oral impulses, and, for women, a means for resolving in fantasy the resentment arising from the lack of a penis. Love this, I decided half an hour before seeing this post to get or make one myself, as an apotropaic symbol. In ancient Greece, women were usually accused of provoking men with their image or their personality and are usually blamed when anything happens to them. It also speaks of the power to generate new ideas for accomplishing a given task. Shoulder Medusa Tattoo Fabio Mauro Symbol Sage points out, "The beheading of Medusa can be seen as symbolic of silencing powerful women who voice their sentiments." Further to this ability to turn people into stone, depictions of Medusa were used as a type of protection against evil. The Gorgon as a symbol of protection TW: Mention of r*pe. Her expression is one of surprised, but unblinking, sorrow. Medusa was r*ped by Poseidon in Athena's temple and Athena was wrong for punishing her. She was very lovely once, the hope of many An envious suitor, and of all her beauties Her hair most beautifulat least I heard so From one who claimed he had seen her. He poses the idea that to decapitate = to castrate. Through this framework, Freud posits that the female head is akin to her genitalia keeping in mind that Medusa did in fact give birth to her child from her severed neck. She was the child of Ceto and Phorcys. Medusa as a symbol for women's empowerment. Medusa is so alluring to us, because she is the image of intoxication, petrifaction, and luring attractiveness. She is seductive to us in her contemporary application and dimensionality. women in power (or fighting for power) have been compared to Medusa, from Marie Antoinette to the suffragettes. It keeps your spiritual atmosphere thick enough to repel every negative force. To become confident in your feminine gender, you should try keeping medusas image with you. The clinical material cited in the above papers refers to male patients, except one case cited by Flugel. More by Allison Meier. The man was caught carrying Juanita in a food delivery backpack. For this Athena punished her hideously. You should never joke with what you say because forces are paying attention to every utterance of yours. Ancient Egyptians used the Eye of Horus to provide protection. Venus had many lovers both mortal and immortal. This prompted the curse she sustains till this moment. The Gorgon, Medusa, was said to have been raped by the God of the Sea, Poseidon, but were there any children that were a product of this animosity? It bears worth mentioning that Im very new to Hellenism, so Im a little confused as to how this all works. From a feminist perspective, Medusas story seems a cautionary tale of the symbolic decapitation of women and a loss of ones power. The image of her severed head remains a powerful protective amulet. The phoenix is an important symbol of life, death, and rebirth and is a popular image to get tattooed because of its incredible meaning. For more often than not, shes depicted just as a severed head a visual that even has its own name,the Gorgoneion sculpted, painted, or carved being held aloft by her slayer Perseus. In Medusas story, the Gorgon was born a beautiful mortal among her hideous immortal siblings which people saw as a blessing for her. Some stories say that there was one more unnamed Gorgon who was older than the others. However, Poseidon fell in love with her and slept with her. Ideally, Medusa's face is so repulsive and terrifying that it will repel evil entities. Athena grows jealous, as many men flock to her, only to glance at Medusa instead. During the late 20th century, feminists began to reassess the myth of Medusa. In Greek mythology, Medusa was a Gorgon - a creature with snakes for hair and the ability to turn anyone who looked at her into stone. If she had not sworn an oath of celibacy, She might not suffer the grave consequences that befell her after Poseidon slept with her. She is revered for this power and grants wisdom to everyone that asks for it. In ancient greek mythology, medusa was a beautiful priestess of Athena. It also tells you to be confident in your physical looks. Medusa's beautyand, in particular, her femininityremains as dangerous as her original monstrosity. However, she found a way to remain relevant. The Gorgon was also a representation of protection and had symbols. This began with the greeks and later flowed down to every other culture. In ancient Egyptian society, the Eye of Horus (Wadjet) was widely used as a symbol of protection, restoration, and royal power. To ensure your safety from spiritual attacks, try to keep a medusa symbol in front of your home. However, it also became a symbol of protection and safety. Her decapitation is in direct result of male anxiety about maintaining power and control. Medusa, the most famous of the Gorgon sisters, represented an array of things to the Greeks. Thankfully, we have collectively realized that the person who deserves to have his head cut off is Neptune, and hopefully one day that revenge fiction will be brought to the big screen. In this version of the story, it is said that Medusa was in the temple of Minvera and that one day Neptune, the god of the sea, found her and sexually assaulted her. Freud considered that as a result, she became the unapproachable woman who repels all sexual desire by carrying (symbolically) the genitals of the mother. Now Medusa is now seen as a feminist icon as her ability to turn men into stone can be seen as a way to empower womxn; as Poet Percy Shelley writes about the snaked hair womxns powers as both being full of grace and terror. Early Greek and English authors also said that Athena was the help Perseus had to behead Medusa. All of Medusa's siblings were monsters by birth and, even though she was not, she had the misfortune of being turned . Worth looking into it, if youre curious. Athena holds her head and Hades her soul. Protection Symbol #9 The Eye of Horus. She is astute in the ways of protection and lends her guardianship to those who need her most. In myth Medusa was the granddaughter of the earth (Gaia) and the ocean (Oceanus), a beautiful mortal Gorgon maiden sworn to celibacy to fulfill her duties as an attendant to Athena. All three are originally described as having tusks, wings, and the infamously iconic snake hair. To this moment, her beautiful face remains even with the snake on her head. The tragedy of Medusa reflected how ancient Greece viewed women and their attitude towards them. Beyond the stories we have heard about this goddess, there are things to learn from her, which can be applied to our daily living. As weve mentioned, the myth of Medusa can be interpreted in various ways, but I think perhaps the most fascinating analysis is done through a feminist perspective because it unveils just how swift we are to circumvent female rage. The first depiction of Medusa can be dated back from a poem by Homer as being part of the three gorgon sisters, Stheno and Euryale. While there were some hints at Medusa once being a beautiful woman, that narrative didnt really get popular until the Roman poet Ovid wrote Metamorphoses, which contained 15 books and over 250 myths, including his version of the Medusa story. An early 1800s plaster cast from the studio of Antonio Canova showspreparation for the marble statue that now presides over the Mets European Sculpture Court. Dangerous Beauty: Medusa in Classical Art now at the Metropolitan Museum of Art draws on around 60 works from the Manhattan museums collections to explore the transformation of Medusa and other classical female hybrid creatures, from sphinxes to sirens to Scylla, a sailor-eating sea creature with twelve legs and six necks who makes an appearance in Homers Odyssey. Athena brandished Medusa's head on her shield similarly to why Ancient Greek soldiers brandished Phobos's face on their shields: to insight fear. If you also desire wisdom and deep understanding, keep a medusa bracelet with you and mediate on it constantly. Thereby, to castrate a man is to severe his most vital organ; and to decapitate a woman is to take her most vital source of power. What does it mean when Animals Come to You? The Medusa tattoo features a snake-haired young woman, representing the might of women. Other shades of history claimed that Poseidon raped her because he could not resist her beauty. In Greek mythology, Medusa was a Gorgon, one of three monstrous sisters comprised of Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale. These later images may have lost the gaping mouth, sharp teeth, and beard, but they preserve the most striking quality of the Gorgon: the piercing and unflinching outward gaze.. In fact, her name means Queen, and her sisters have similar positive names, whereas Perseus means to destroy and if that doesnt mean something, I dont know what does. Even though the curse took away her beauty, she remains an emblem of feminine confidence. Her luscious hair was her most defining feature and she wasnt shy of flaunting herself to others either. She turned anyone unlucky enough to stare directly at her face into stone. On view in NYC. I know for a fact Romans wore this as an apotropaic symbol, to avert evil (sorry not as knowledgable about Greek practices yet) . When it comes to relationships, medusa is a lesson to learn. As a result, women with Medusa Tattoos can show their fierce determination and may also reflect their unpredictable and impulsive nature. There are numerous images of Medusa in an almost angel-like state, or even once she had been cursed, images where the snakes in her hair function as more of an accessory rather than something fearsome. The complexity lies in how to represent her hair by art. Anyone that believes in her will enjoy this protection continually. The reason for medusas plight was her unfaithfulness to the vow she made. Chariot pole finial with the head of Medusa (detail) (Roman, Imperial, 1st2nd century CE), bronze, silver, and copper, height: 7 1/4 inches, width: 7 inches; diameter: 4 1/4 inches (courtesy the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Rogers Fund, 1918). What does this mean? Your email address will not be published. This extends to even monsters like Medusa which really showed us how the ancient Greeks viewed the things around them. Her writhing hair of serpents became wild curls, with maybe a couple of serpents beneath her chin to hint at her more bestial origins. Cixous disagrees with this analysis. Then her severed head, capable of transfixion even in death, is carted away to help him defeat the villain of his story. There is a painful recognition in the fact that Medusas head the center of her knowledge and power is taken from her in order to empower a man and to fight his battles for him.
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