Princess Danae was a lover of Zeus and the mother of Perseus, the most important king of Athens
Danae by Rembrandt, 1636. The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg (Russia)
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According to Greek mythology, Danaë was beautiful princess, daughter of Acrisius, the King of Argos and Eurydice from Sparta.
There once came a time when the delphic oracle of Apollo revealed that the king of Argos would die at the hands of his grandson. In order to save his life, the king confined Danae together with her nursemaid into a bronze tower to retain her virginity.
However, almighty Zeus, the king of the gods, deeply fell in love with beautiful Danae, so he transformed himself into a bright shower of gold to be able to visit her inside her dark prison. Once there, the couple moved fluidly in an amourous embrace. Danae got impregnated by Zeus, bearing him a son whom she gave the name Perseus.
When Danaë' s father Acrisius discovered the baby, he furiously cast them both out to sea in a wooden chest, but they floated ashore on the Isle of Seriphos where they were rescued by a brave fisherman called Dictys.
Years later, when Perseus had reached adulthood, he accidentally killed his grandfather Acrisius while throwing the discus, making this way the old prophecy come true.
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