Perseus's Meteors

If you have been looking up at the sky the last few nights you may have noticed points of lights cartwheeling graceful parabolas across the heavens. They are meteors, the sons of Perseus streaking across the blackness of space to tell his tale.

Perseus and his Surrounding Constellations

They are named the Perseid Meteors because they originate from an area of space within the constellation of Perseus, and every August this prolific meteor shower lights up the night sky with its pyrotechnic display. However what few people may realise is that the myth of Perseus and his great deeds are written right there in the night sky.

A story in the stars, Perseus is visible in the northern skies, saving Andromeda from her terrible fate at the hands of the dreadful sea monster Cetus, while her parents Cepheus and Cassiopeia lie nearby.

Perseus by Benvenuto Cellini

The Constellation of Perseus, shows him in full heroic pose, sword thrust forward while the head of the gorgon, Medusa in his other hand, in the act of saving Andromeda. Andromeda herself lies to the right of Perseus in the night sky, chained to her rock, ready to be sacrificed to the dreadful sea monster Cetus, who eternally chases her across the night sky.

Above Andromeda sit her parents, Cassiopeia and Cepheus. Cassiopeia however did not escape punishment from the god Poseidon, for boasting to be more beautiful than all the nymphs of the ocean. She was placed high in the night sky, permanently spinning around the pole star, spending half her time upside down. Cepheus, her husband resides in the sky next to her, permanently reminded of his guilt and shame by the stars around him.

But how do these stories tell the myth of Perseus? Well they don't tell the whole myth that's true, but they do show one of the most exciting parts. Ridiculed by the king of Seriphos for liking his mothers company when he should be out doing daring deeds, Perseus was tasked with proving his courage by killing the gorgon Medusa.

With the aid of the gods, a shining shield from Athena, the winged shoes and sickle of Hermes and Hades helmet of invisibility, Perseus completed his quest to kill Medusa. Avoiding her gaze that turned a man to stone by looking in the reflection of his shield, Perseus set off home on his winged sandals.

Black Glaze Mug Showing Perseus Beheading Medusa
from the British Museum

Flying over the land of Aethiopi the hero came across the beautiful Andromeda in the act of being sacrificed to the sea monster Cetus, an attempt by her parents to appease Poseidon. Her mother Andromeda had claimed that the she and her daughter were more beautiful than the nymphs of the sea and Poseidon had flooded the kingdom at this boasting. The Orcale of Ammon had announced that the only way to assuage Poseidon was to sacrifice their daughter to the monster Cetus and that is where Perseus finds her.

Using either his sword to kill the monster or the Medua's head to turn Cetus to stone, Perseus was victorious and claimed Andromeda's hand in marriage. Returning home Perseus stopped the wicked advances of the king towards his mother, by turning him to stone with Medusa's head.

There is of course more to the tale of Perseus, there always is with the heroes of ancient Greece, but each year, in the early weeks of August small darts of light call you to look up into the night sky and see the hero in his greatest moment, saving a pretty damsel from a terrifying monster. A story in the stars.


Thanks for Reading
James