the Danae Convex Mirror

In All, Mirrors by Mark Evans

 

Danae Convex Mirror 16"The Danae convex mirror is truly a labor of love.  The three level frame is covered with gold, straw and amber colored Venetian glass rods.  The quartz crystal points are projected out from the frame using a circlet of glass, creating an enhanced sense of depth.

The frame is 16 inches in diameter and is being sent to the Aisworth-Noah showroom in Atlanta, Georgia.

Jewelry for walls.

Danae Side 2

Danae Detail

Danae was the daughter of King Acrisius of Argos and Queen Euridice , in Greek mythology.

Acrisius was disappointed that he had no sons to give his throne, and asked an oracle for help. The answer he got was that his grandson would kill him. At that point, Danae was childless, and to keep the prophecy from coming true, Acrisius locked her in a tower. However, Zeus had seen Danae and had grown fond of her; so, during the night, he appeared to her in the form of golden rain and impregnated her. She gave birth to a baby, which she named Perseus.

Danae’s impregnation by Zeus in the form of a shower of gold has inspired artists through the centuries.  Here are a few of them:

1200px-Danae_gold_shower_Louvre_CA925

Greek Vase circa 450-425 BC

Tizian_-_Danae_receiving_the_Golden_Rain_-_Prado

Titian, 1560’s

danae Klimt

Gustav Klimt, 1907

And for the rest of Danae’s story:

When Acrisius found out what had happened, he was infuriated; however, he did not want to kill his grandson out of fear of the Furies. So, he locked Danae and Perseus in a chest and threw it at sea. The chest drifted away and reached the island of Seriphos, where Dictys, a fisherman and the local ruler’s brother, helped the mother and the child. The king of Seriphos fell in love with Danae and tried to forcefully marry her. However, Perseus did not let him. Furious, but also not wanting to outright kill Perseus, the king said that he would stop pursuing his mother if  Perseus would slay Medusa and bring back her head. So it happened, and Danae was saved.

When Perseus reached adulthood, he became a great hero and managed to accomplish a number of feats. He eventually decided to return to Argos and see his grandfather, but after finding out about the prophecy, she changed course and went to Larissa in order to participate in the athletic games that were held there. What he did not know, though, was that Acrisius also attended the event. While Perseus was throwing the discus, an accidental misthrow caused the discus to land on his grandfather’s head, and resulting in his instant death. Thus, the prophecy was fulfilled.

Many thanks to greekmythology.com for the legend of Danae above.