Gorgon these myths relate that Perseus was armed with a scythe from Hermes and a mirror (or a shield) from Athena. Perseus could safely cut off Medusa's head without turning to stone by looking only at her reflection in the shield. From the blood that spurted from her neck and falling into the sea, sprang Pegasus and Chrysaor, her sons by Poseidon. Other sources say that each drop of blood became a snake. Perseus is said by some to have given the head, which retained the power of turning into stone all who looked upon it, to Athena. She then placed
Antonio Canova "Perseus Triumphant", sometimes called "Perseus with the Head of Medusa", was a statue commissioned by tribune Onorato Duveyriez. It depicts the Greek hero Perseus after his victory over the Gorgon Medusa. The statue was based freely to the Apollo Belvedere and the Medusa Rondanini. Napoleon, after his 1796 Italian Campaign, took the Apollo Belvedere to Paris. In the statue's absence, Pope Pius VII acquired Canova's "Perseus Triumphant" and placed the work upon the "Apollo"'s pedestal. The statue was so successful that when the "Apollo" was returned, "Perseus" remained as a companion piece. One replica of the statue was purchased from