''Perseus and Andromeda'' is a 1622 painting in the Hermitage Museum by the Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens of the ancient Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda after the former's defeat of the Gorgon. The composition is similar to that of an earlier painting by Rubens, Perseus frees Andromeda (now Gemäldegalerie, Berlin). Perseus, in the centre of the painting, is surrounded by three putti, one holding the shield with Gorgon's reflection, one wearing the hero's helmet, while the third holds the winged horse Tobiano

Pegasus Pegasus ( grc-gre, Πήγασος, Pḗgasos; la, Pegasus, Pegasos) is one of the best known creatures in Greek mythology. He is a winged divine stallion usually depicted as pure white in color. He was sired by Poseidon, in his role as hor ...

. Above, Victory, the goddess of glory, is depicted in the act of placing a crown on the hero's head. Two other putti free Andromeda from the rock to which she is tied. Cetus, the sea monster defeated by the hero, is shown below. This painting probably remained in Rubens' house until his death; an engraving from 1684, depicting the facade of Rubens' house in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

, shows the painting through the window of the second floor. In the summer of 1769 the painting was acquired by the Russian Hermitage Museum from the collections of

Heinrich von Brühl Heinrich, count von Brühl ( pl, Henryk Brühl, 13 August 170028 October 1763), was a Polish-Saxon statesman at the court of Saxony and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and a member of the powerful German von Brühl family. The incumbency of ...

. It is now housed in the Rubens Hall on the second floor of the Hermitage Museum.

References

Other versions by Rubens

File:Peter Paul Rubens - Perseus Freeing Andromeda - WGA20306.jpg, ''

Perseus Freeing Andromeda ''Perseus Freeing Andromeda'' or ''Liberation of Andromeda'' is a painting created by Piero di Cosimo, during the Italian Renaissance. The painting was praised by critics and art historians for its aesthetic, cosmological and political implicat ...

'', Gemäldegalerie File:Peter Paul Rubens - Andromeda - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Perseus Freeing Andromeda'' in the Gemäldegalerie File:Peter Paul Rubens - Perseus Liberating Andromeda - WGA20324.jpg, ''Perseus Freeing Andromeda'', Prado Museum File:LAMBERT SUSTRIS in comparison with PETER PAUL RUBENS.png, ''Earlier painting by Lambert Sustris may have served as inspiration for one of the versions'' {{ACArt Mythological paintings by Peter Paul Rubens Paintings of Andromeda Paintings in the Hermitage Museum 1620s paintings