Danaë

One of the famous stories of the Greek mythology is about Danae, daughter of King Acrisius of Argos in the Greek Peloponnese. Danae was considered amongst the most beautiful of all mortals. King Acrisius was disappointed that he had no sons and asked an oracle for advice. Unfortunately, the oracle foretold that the son of Danae would kill him. To keep the prophecy from coming true, Acrisius locked her in a bronze tower. However, Zeus had already seen Danae and appeared to her in the form of golden shower. As a result, Danae gave birth to a baby, which she named Perseus.

As soon as her father learned of this, he placed Danae and the infant in a chest and set them adrift at sea. By the providence of the gods they made it safely to the island of Seriphos where the fisherman Diktys offered them refuge.

Many years later, Perseus became a great hero. At a certain moment Perseus participated in a event of athletic games. What he did not know, was that King Acrisius also attended the event. While Perseus was throwing the discus, an accidental misthrow caused the discus to land on Acrisius head, which resulted in his instant death. The prophecy was fulfilled.

This impressive artwork work by André Romijn is created on gold leaf (laid on wood), acrylic and oil.