1. Set Adrift These things are said by the poets about Perseus. Perseus was the son of Iuppiter, the greatest of the gods. The grandfather of Perseus was named Acrisius [ah KRIS ee uhs]. Acrisius wanted to kill Perseus, his grandson; for he feared the boy because of an oracle. He therefore seized Perseus, still a baby, and, with his mother, closed [him] in a wooden box. Then he threw this same box [the box itself] into the sea. Danaź [DAHN ah ee], the mother of Perseus, was very frightened; for a great storm was churning up the sea. Perseus, however, was sleeping in his mother's embrace [bossom].

2. Cast on an Island Iuppiter nevertheless saw all these things, and he decided to save his son. He therefore made the sea calm, and he led the box to the island [of] Seriphus. Of this island, Polydectes [pah leh DEK teez] was at that time the king. After the box was pushed to the shore, Danaź rested [was taking quiet] on the sand. After a brief time, she was found by a certain [by some] fisherman. and was taken to the home of the king Polydectes. That [man] kindly received mother and boy, and gave [them] a safe place in his borders. Danaź accepted this gift willingly, and for such great act of kindness, she thanked the king [made thanks to the king].

3. Perseus sent on his travels Perseus therefore lived there for many years, and led a happy life with his mother. But Polydectes greatly loved Danae and he wanted to marry her [to lead her into marriage]. This plan, nevertheless, was hardly pleasant to Perseus. Polydectes therefore decided to send the boy away. Then he called the young man to him and said these things: It's shameful to live this worthless life; you've been a young man for a long time; until when will you stay here? It is time to take up arms and show some manliness [virtue]. Depart from here, and bring me the head of Medusa.

4. Perseus gets his outfit Perseus, when he heard these things, left the island and, after he came to the mainland, he sought Medusa. For a long time he sought in vain, for he did not know the nature of the place. Finally, Apollo and Minerva showed the way. First he came to the Graeae [GRĪ yī], sister of Medusa. From them [these] he got sandals and a magic helmet. Apollo and Minerva, moreover, gave a sickle and a mirror. Then after he put the sandals on his feet, he went up into the air. For a long time he flew through the air; finally nevertheless he came to the place where Medusa lived with the other Gorgons. The Gorgons were monsters with a horrible appearance; for their heads were completely covered with snakes; and even [their] hands were made from bronze.

5. The Gorgon's head It was a most difficult matter to cut off the head of the Gorgon; for men were turned into a stone by her sight.On account of this reason, Minerva had given that mirror. Perseus therefore turned his back, and he looked into the mirror; in this way he came to the place where Medusa was sleeping. Then with the sickle he cut off her head with one blow. The other Gorgons immediately were roused from sleep and, when they saw the situation, they were angered [moved by anger]. They seized weapons, and they wanted to kill Perseus; that [man], however, while he was fleeing, put on the magic helmet and, when he did this, immediately he escaped from their sight.

6. The sea serpent After these things, Perseus came into the borders of the Aethiopians. There a certain Cepheus was ruling at that time. This [man] had formerly offended Neptune, the god of the sea. Neptune accordingly had sent a most savage monster. This [monster] would come from the sea every day and eat people. For this reason, fear filled the minds of everybody. Cepheus, therefore, consulted the oracle of the god Hammon, and was ordered by the god to give his daughter over to the monster. His daughter, don't you know, by the name of Andromeda, was a most beautiful young woman, Cepheus, when he heard these things, felt a great sorrow. He nevertheless wanted to rescue [extract] his citizens from such a great danger, and so for this reason decided to do the commands of the god

7. A human sacrifice Then the king set the day and got everything ready. When the day arrived, Andromeda was led to the shore and tied up to the cliff in front of everyone. Everyone deplored her fate, and they didn't hold back their tears. Then suddenly, while everyone was waiting for the monster, Perseus came running up; and, when he saw the tears, he asked why everyone was so sad. They explained the whole situation and showed him the girl. While this was going on, a terrifying roar was heard; at just that moment a horrible looking monster was seen in the distance. The sight of him terrified everyone. And the monster came rushing up to the shore very quickly, and was already coming near the place where the girl was standing.

8. The rescue And when he saw this, Perseus grabbed his sword, and, after he put on his sandals, he was lifted into the air. Then from above he suddenly attacked the monster and seriously wounded its neck with his sword. When the monster felt the wound, he let out a terrifying roar and went under the waves without delay. While he was flying around the shore, Perseus was waiting for the monster to come back; the sea, don't you know, in the meantime was everywhere stained with blood. A little while later, the beast lifted its head up once again; soon, nevertheless it was wounded by Perseus with a more serious blow. Then once again it went under the waves, and was not seen again.

9. The reward of valor After he went down to the shore, Perseus first took off his sandals; then he went to the cliff where Andromeda had been tied up. She had nearly given up all hope of rescue and, when Perseus came up, she was almost exhausted because of fear. He immediately undid the chains and returned the girl to her father. Cepheus was very pleased by this. He gave Perseus a well-deserved thanks for such a great act of kindness. In addition, he gave him Andromeda herself in marriage. He willingly accepted this gift, and he married the girl. For a few years, he lived in this region with his wife, and he was held in great esteem by the Ethiopians. But he very much wanted to see his mother again. Finally, therefore, he left Cepheus' land with his [own, not Cepheus's!] wife.

10. Turned to stone After Perseus docked his boat at the island, he went to the place where his mother used to live. But he found the home empty and completely deserted. For three days he searched for his mother throughout the entire island. Finally on the fourth day, he arrived at the temple of Diana. Danae had fled there because she was afraid of Polydectes. When he found this out, Perseus was very angry, and without delay he hurried into the palace of Polydectes. He immediately burst into the atrium. Polydectus was terrified and tried to escape. But while he was fleeing, Perseus displayed the head of Medusa. Just as soon as he saw it, he [Polydectes] was turned into stone.

11. The oracle fulfilled After this, Perseus returned with his wife to the city of Acrisius. When he saw Perseus, Acrisius was terrified. For he still feared his grandson because of the oracle. He immediately escaped into Thessaly to the city Larissa. But it was in vain, and he did not avoid his fate. After a few years, the king of Larissa held great games; he sent out messengers everywhere and announced the date. Many people from all the cities of Greece came to the games. Perseus himself, among others, entered the discus competition. But while he was throwing the discus, he killed his grandfather by accident. For Acrisius happened to be standing among the spectators of this contest.