Perseus is the legendary Greek hero who slayed the gorgon Medusa and won the hand of the beautiful Andromeda. He is also the mythological founder of the great Late Bronze Age city of Mycenae, where he reigned as king, with Andromeda as his consort. They founded a dynasty known as the Perseid and their descendants were said to have reigned in Mycenae for three generations, ending when the last, Eurytheas, died without children.

Perseus was the son of Zeus and Danae, the daughter of the Akrisios, the king of Argos. While taking part in funeral games, Perseus accidentally kills Akrisios, his grandfather (a fate foretold long before by the Oracle of Delphi). Because of this, Perseus is unable to inherit Argos. Instead, he exchanges kingdoms with his half-brother, Megapenthes, and becomes the king of Tiryns.

But legend tells of his decision to found a new city, Mycenae, in the place where the pommel of his sword fell (the word for pommel, myces, may be the origin of the name Mycenae). Alternative legends suggest that Perseus was thirsty, and picked a mushroom (also known as myces), and drank the water that came from it. His new settlement was named after the mushroom that quenched his thirst.

The source for the stories of Perseus and the foundation of Mycenae are taken from the writings of Pausanias (a traveler and geographer of the 2nd century AD). Both tales of the foundation are recounted in Pausanias’ writings. He later also tells how there was a sacred fountain at the site, known as Persea (clearly a name derived from the same source as Perseus), and he recounts how the walls of Mycenae were built by the mythological Cyclopes, who were also reputed to have built Tiryns.

It is clear that many of these stories are fantastical; we no longer believe that a giant one-eyed race such as the Cyclopes ever existed. However, it is possible that later inhabitants of this part of Greece looked at the mighty ruined walls of the city of Mycenae and marveled at their extent, surmising that only a race of giants could have built them. The myth of the Cyclopes builders survives in some of the terminology still used today to describe the way the fortifications of Mycenae were built, it is known as ‘Cyclopean masonry’.

The use of language such as this reflects the fact that many early archaeological investigations of Mycenae were carried out in the belief that the site held the key to the origins of Greek mythology. Schliemann, one of the earliest excavators at Mycenae, believed at one point that he had found the grave of Agamemnon. Mythology has continued to color much of the archaeological discussion of Late Bronze Age Greece in this way. However, scholars now suggest that, while many Greek myths (like that of Perseus and Mycenae) appear to have their origins in the Agean Bronze Age, it is unlikely that we will ever find a direct correlation between the myth and the archaeological remains.