PERSES (a), ter'-sis. I. Son of Perseus and Andromeda ; gave his name to the Persians (formerly Cephenes). 2. The son of the Sol and Perse, was father of Hecate, and brother of ./Eetes and Circe. 3. See PERSEUS (.* PERSEUS, fier'-scus. a. The famous sort of Jupiter and Acrisius's daughter Danae (q. v.). Having been exposed with his mother on the sea, he was drifted to Seriphos, where he was found by a fisherman, Dictys, and reared by King Polydectes, and in early youth dis tinguished himself by genius and courage. Polydectes having, in course of time, fallen in lave with Danale, and wishing to get rid of Perseus, sent him to bring Medusa's head (see GORGONES) ; Perseus, however, was favoured by Mercury, who took him to the Grace (Pephredre, Elle, Dine), the three daughters of Phorcys and Ceti, who were aged from their birth, and had only one eye and one tooth to use between them. Perseus took away the tooth and eye till they agreed to take him to the nymphs from whom he re ceived the winged sandals, magic bag, and Pluto's helmet, which made the wearer in visible ; the Greta: also told him where to find their sisters, the Gorgons, and Perseus re ceived from Mercury a sickle (Spun), and from Minerva a mirror ; he then flew to the home of the Gorgons, whom he found asleep, I and cut off Medusa's head, looking at her figure reflected in the mirror to avoid gazing on her head, for a sight of it changed the beholder into stone. He placed the head in his bag and flew away, pursued by the two other Gorgons, Sthleno and EuryAle, but, being invisible, he escaped. On his return through Mauretania, having been refused en tertainment by King Atlas, who had remem bered that his gardens were to be robbed by a son of Jupiter (see HESPERIDES), he changed him by Medusa's head into the Mount Atlas ; and in Ethiopia he won the hand of Cepheus's daughter Andromeda (q. v.) by delivering her
from the sea-monster ; but his nuptials were interrupted by the entrance of her uncle Phineus, and armed companions, to carry off the bride, and Perseus was saved only by changing his assailants into stone. Having returned to Seriphos, and changed into stone Polydectes and his courtiers, and placed Dictys on the throne, he took with him Dan'de (who had fled to a temple from Polydectes' violence) to Argos. Acrisius, his maternal grandfather, fled to Larissa, fearing punish ment for his exposure of Dane and her son, and Perseus followed, to persuade him to return, but accidentally killed him with his quoit, at the games, when Acrisius was in disguise among the spectators. Perseus then exchanged the kingdom of Argos for Tiryns, with Megapenthes' son Proems, and founded Mycenx. Perseus was the father of Alcmus, Sthenelus, Nestor, Electron, and Gorge phUne. After his metamorphosis of Poly dectes, he presented Medusa's head to Minerva, who placed it on her lEgis. 2. Or PERSES, per'-sis, succeeded his father, King Philip V. of Macedonia, 178 B.C., and, like him, was noted for his enmity to the Romans, with whom he warred four years (x7x—x68). His avarice and timidity pre vented his success, and he was totally de feated at Pydna by L. 2Emilius Paulus, x68. He fled to Samothrace, but was made pri soner, and carried, with his family, in Paulus's triumph at Rome. He had a daughter and two sons, Philip and Alexander, of whom the latter was, after having passed many years as a common carpenter, made secretary to the Senate. Perseus spent the remainder of his life as a prisoner on parole at Alba.