Μέδουσα

Medusa

Translated by Jennifer Benedict16 Jul 2000Vetting: high7 revisions

4 notes · 339 words
She [who was] also called Gorgon.
Perseus, the son of Danae and Pekos,1 having learned all the mystic apparitions and wanting to establish for himself his own kingdom, despised that of the Medes. And going through a great expanse of land he saw a virgin maiden, hideous and ugly, and turning aside [to speak] to her, he asked "what is your name?" And she said, "Medusa." And cutting off her head he despatched her2 as he had been taught, and he hung it up, amazing and destroying all who saw it. The head he called Gorgon, because of its sheer force. And from there he went into a country that was ruled by Cepheus and he found in the temple a virgin maiden called Andromeda, whom he married; and he founded a city into a village,3 called Amandra, and he set up a stone [depicting] the Gorgon hanging. This [city] changed it name to Ikonion4 because it was a representation [a)peiko/nisma] of the Gorgon. He also made war on the Isaurians and the Cilicians and founded a city that he named Tarsus. Its previous name had been Andrasus; but told by an oracle to found a city to mark victories, in the place where after the victory he hurt the flat [tarso/s] of his foot in dismounting from his horse, he called it Tarsus. After conquering the Medes too, he changed the name of the country and called it Persia. He taught the terrible initiation connected with the Gorgon to some of the Persians, whom he called magi. At this time too a ball of fire was brought down out of heaven, and from this Perseus took fire and gave it to those of his tribe to guard and to revere, as something brought down out of heaven. He made war on Cepheus, but because he was old and could not see, the head did not work, and thinking it to be useless, Perseus turned it toward himself and beheld it and perished. Later his son Merros burned it.

Greek original · Adler’s text

Μέδουσα· ἡ καὶ Γοργόνη κληθεῖσα. Περσεύς, ὁ Δανάης καὶ Πήκου υἱός, διδαχθεὶς πάσας τὰς μυστικὰς φαντασίας, ἰδίαν βουλόμενος ἑαυτῷ καταστῆσαι βασιλείαν κατεφρόνησε τῆς τῶν Μήδων· καὶ διὰ πολλῆς ἐρχόμενος γῆς εἶδε παρθένον κόρην αὐχμηράν τε καὶ δυσειδῆ, καὶ ἀποβλέψας εἰς αὐτὴν ἐρωτᾷ, τίς καλεῖται· ἡ δὲ εἶπε, Μέδουσα, καὶ ἀποτεμὼν αὐτῆς τὴν κεφαλὴν ἐτέλεσεν αὐτὴν ὡς ἐδιδάχθη, καὶ ἐβάσταζε, καταπλήττων πάντας καὶ ἀναιρῶν τοὺς ὁρῶντας· ἥν τινα κεφαλὴν ἐκάλεσε Γοργόνην, διὰ τὴν ὀξύτητα τῆς ἐνεργείας. ἐκεῖθεν δὲ ἐλθὼν εἰς χώραν βασιλευομένην ὑπὸ Κηφέως εὗρεν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ παρθένον κόρην, τὴν λεγομένην Ἀνδρομέδαν, ἣν ἔγημε· καὶ κτίζει πόλιν εἰς κώμην, λεγομένην Ἄμανδραν, στήσας καὶ στήλην βαστάζουσαν τὴν Γοργόνην. αὕτη μετεκλήθη Ἰκόνιον, διὰ τὸ ἀπεικόνισμα τῆς Γοργόνης. ἐπολέμησε δὲ καὶ Ἰσαύροις καὶ Κίλιξι καὶ κτίζει πόλιν, ἣν ἐκάλεσε Ταρσόν, τοπρὶν λεγομένην Ἀνδρασόν. χρηματισθεὶς δέ, ὅτι μετὰ τὴν νίκην ἐν ᾧ τόπῳ ἀποβὰς ἀπὸ τοῦ ἵππου τὸν ταρσὸν τοῦ ποδὸς ἀπόθηται, ἐκεῖ ὑπὲρ τῶν νικητηρίων κτίσαι πόλιν, ταύτην οὖν ἐκάλεσε Ταρσόν. νικήσας δὲ καὶ τοὺς Μήδους ἤμειψε τὸ ὄνομα τῆς χώρας καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὴν Περσίδα. ἐδίδαξε δὲ καὶ τὴν μυσαρὰν τελετὴν τὴν ἐπὶ τῇ Γοργόνῃ τινὰς τῶν Περσῶν, οὓς ἐκάλεσε μάγους. καθ' οὓς χρόνους καὶ σφαῖρα πυρὸς κατηνέχθη ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ἐξ ἧς ἔλαβε πῦρ ὁ Περσεὺς καὶ παρέδωκε τοῖς τοῦ ἔθνους φυ- λάττειν καὶ τιμᾶν, ὡς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατενεχθέν. συμβαλὼν δὲ πόλεμον τῷ Κηφεῖ, τοῦ δὲ διὰ τὸ γῆρας μὴ βλέποντος καὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς μὴ ἐνεργούσης, δοκῶν αὐτὴν ἀνωφελῆ εἶναι, ἐπιστρέψας πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ὁ Περσεὺς καὶ ταύτην θεασάμενος ἀποθνήσκει. ταύτην ὕστερον ἔκαυσεν ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ Μέρρος.

Betacode
*me/dousa: h( kai\ *gorgo/nh klhqei=sa. *perseu/s, o( *dana/hs kai\ *ph/kou ui(o/s, didaxqei\s pa/sas ta\s mustika\s fantasi/as, i)di/an boulo/menos e(autw=| katasth=sai basilei/an katefro/nhse th=s tw=n *mh/dwn: kai\ dia\ pollh=s e)rxo/menos gh=s ei)=de parqe/non ko/rhn au)xmhra/n te kai\ duseidh=, kai\ a)poble/yas ei)s au)th\n e)rwta=|, ti/s kalei=tai: h( de\ ei)=pe, *me/dousa, kai\ a)potemw\n au)th=s th\n kefalh\n e)te/lesen au)th\n w(s e)dida/xqh, kai\ e)ba/staze, kataplh/ttwn pa/ntas kai\ a)nairw=n tou\s o(rw=ntas: h(/n tina kefalh\n e)ka/lese *gorgo/nhn, dia\ th\n o)cu/thta th=s e)nergei/as. e)kei=qen de\ e)lqw\n ei)s xw/ran basileuome/nhn u(po\ *khfe/ws eu(=ren e)n tw=| i(erw=| parqe/non ko/rhn, th\n legome/nhn *)androme/dan, h(\n e)/ghme: kai\ kti/zei po/lin ei)s kw/mhn, legome/nhn *)/amandran, sth/sas kai\ sth/lhn basta/zousan th\n *gorgo/nhn. au(/th meteklh/qh *)iko/nion, dia\ to\ a)peiko/nisma th=s *gorgo/nhs. e)pole/mhse de\ kai\ *)isau/rois kai\ *ki/lici kai\ kti/zei po/lin, h(\n e)ka/lese *tarso/n, topri\n legome/nhn *)andraso/n. xrhmatisqei\s de/, o(/ti meta\ th\n ni/khn e)n w(=| to/pw| a)poba\s a)po\ tou= i(/ppou to\n tarso\n tou= podo\s a)po/qhtai, e)kei= u(pe\r tw=n nikhthri/wn kti/sai po/lin, tau/thn ou)=n e)ka/lese *tarso/n. nikh/sas de\ kai\ tou\s *mh/dous h)/meiye to\ o)/noma th=s xw/ras kai\ e)ka/lesen au)th\n *persi/da. e)di/dace de\ kai\ th\n musara\n teleth\n th\n e)pi\ th=| *gorgo/nh| tina\s tw=n *persw=n, ou(\s e)ka/lese ma/gous. kaq' ou(\s xro/nous kai\ sfai=ra puro\s kathne/xqh e)k tou= ou)ranou=, e)c h(=s e)/labe pu=r o( *perseu\s kai\ pare/dwke toi=s tou= e)/qnous fu-  la/ttein kai\ tima=n, w(s e)k tou= ou)ranou= katenexqe/n. sumbalw\n de\ po/lemon tw=| *khfei=, tou= de\ dia\ to\ gh=ras mh\ ble/pontos kai\ th=s kefalh=s mh\ e)nergou/shs, dokw=n au)th\n a)nwfelh= ei)=nai, e)pistre/yas pro\s e(auto\n o( *perseu\s kai\ tau/thn qeasa/menos a)poqnh/skei. tau/thn u(/steron e)/kausen o( ui(o\s au)tou= *me/rros.

Notes (4)

  1. OCD(4) pp.622-3, s.v. Gorgo/Medusa. The present entry's material has parallels in late-antique historiography; cf. John of Antioch frr. 13.2-13.3 Roberto, John Malalas Chronographia II.11-13 Thurn (25-28), and Jeffreys et al. (17-19).
    cf. generally gamma 390 and pi 1372.
  2. 1Zeus: see pi 1500. ↩
  3. 2The Vossianus manuscript omits the words "he despatched her", e)te/lesen au)th\n. ↩
  4. 3So the transmitted text, corrupt. The two nouns need to be reversed. ↩
  5. 4iota 271. ↩

References


J. Thurn, ed., Ioannis Malalae Chronographia, (Berlin 2000)
E. Jeffreys, M. Jeffreys, and R. Scott, trans., The Chronicle of John Malalas, (Leiden 1986)

Linked from5 entries

Neighbouring entries

μ404Μέδιμνονbushelμ405ΜεδιόλανονMediolanon, Mediolanum, Milanμ406ΜέδουσαMedusaμ407Μέδωνlordμ408Μεδοίατοthey might be mindful
Revision history7 revisions · last 13 Jul 2026
  1. added bibliography principal note — Ronald Allen
  2. typo — Catharine Roth
  3. Revised — David Whitehead
  4. Revised — David Whitehead
  5. restorative cosmetics; more keywords — David Whitehead
  6. betacode details — Catharine Roth
  7. modified translation; added notes, bibliography, keywords — David Whitehead
  8. Translated — Jennifer Benedict

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