Castor and Pollux Castor and Pollux Castor and Pollux (or in Greek, Polydeuces) were twin half-brothers in Greek and Roman mythology, known together as the Dioscuri. Their mother was Leda, but they had different fathers; Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, while Pollux was the divine son of Zeus, who seduced Leda in the guise of a swan. Though accounts of their birth are varied, they are sometimes said to have been born from an egg, along with their twin sisters Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra. In Latin the twins are also known as the Gemini (literally "twins")
Leda and the Swan (Peter Paul Rubens) copies of it do. A copy of Michelangelo’s original work was done by Rubens. Rubens would have been familiar with Michelangelo’s "Leda". His version is considered a prototype for Rubens’s two works. Rubens’s 1601 "Leda", was modeled after Michelangelo’s "Leda". The placement of the body is very similar as is its twisting posture. Even the positioning of the fingers is mirrored. The swan is caressing the female in exactly the same way. The actual figure of the female varies drastically between Rubens’s style and Michelangelo’s style. Michelangelo typically depicted women in a masculine way. Muscles are more clearly defined and