Graeae’s Family Tree

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Family

• Ceto(parent),Phorcys(parent),Echidna(sibling),Euryale(sibling),Gorgons(sibling),Ladon(sibling),Medusa(sibling),Stheno(sibling)— Consort

  Phorcys and Ceto, ancient sea deities, produced a brood of monsters: the Gorgons (Medusa, Euryale, Stheno), the Graeae, Echidna, Scylla, and the dragon Ladon.

  ⚠ Hesiod Theogony 295-303 does not explicitly name Echidna's parents; the antecedent of 'she' is debated. Apollodorus (Bibliotheca 2.1.2) gives Tartarus and Gaia as Echidna's parents instead.

Guards

• Medusa

  The Graeae guarded the approach to their sister Medusa's dwelling at the edge of the world. Perseus had to overcome them first by stealing their shared eye before he could reach the Gorgons' lair.

Associated with

• Gorgons

  The Graeae and the Gorgons were sisters, both born to the sea deities Phorcys and Ceto. Perseus tricked the Graeae into revealing the path to the Gorgons' lair by stealing their shared eye.

• Perseus

  Perseus seized the Graeae's single shared eye as it passed between the sisters, leaving the three blind and helpless until they revealed the location of the nymphs who held the cap of invisibility, the winged sandals, and the kibisis he needed for his quest.

• Phorcys

  Phorcys's daughters the Graeae guarded the path to the Gorgons. Perseus tricked them by stealing the single eye and tooth they shared, forcing them to reveal the way to their sisters.