Birth of the Muses - St. Louis, Missouri
Posted by: 
BruceS
N 38° 36.804 W 090° 15.504
15S E 738706 N 4277442
Sculpture based on Greek mythology located at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis.
Waymark Code: WM1HG1
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 05/11/2007
Views: 62
"Birth of the Muses (Pegasus)
In the Greek Myth of Pegasus, the goddess Athena gave Pegasus, a beautiful winged horse, to the nine Muses. With a stroke of his hoof he caused the poetically inspiring fountain Hippocrene to well forth on Mount Helicon.
When a young hero named Bellerophon was sent on dangerous missions by King Iobates, he asked a seer how to capture the winged horse. The seer advised him to sleep in the temple of Athena. After dreaming of the goddess, Bellerophon awoke and found a golden bridle beside him. With this he captured and tamed the magical horse. Flying on Pegasus, Bellerophon destroyed the fire-breathing monster Chimera, defeated the Amazons, and beat off a band of pirates.
The King then gave Bellerophon his daughter in marriage and in time the young hero succeeded to the throne.
After years of happiness, success went to Bellerophon's head and he conceived the idea of riding Pegasus to Mount Olympus, home of the gods. Angered by such arrogance, Zeus sent a gadfly (huge fly) to sting Pegasus in midair. The horse reared in pain and Bellerophon crashed to earth. Crippled and disgraced, he roamed the earth alone until he died.
Pegasus flew on to Olympus, where he became a pack horse of Zeus carrying the god's thunderbolts. Eventually, his image was placed among the stars as a constellation." ~ Missouri Botanical Garden website
Name or use 'Unknown' if not known: Birth of the Muses
Figure Type: Fantasy creature
Artist Name or use 'Unknown' if not known: Jacques Lipchitz
Date created or placed or use 'Unknown' if not known: Placed 1994, was at donor's home for several years prior to donating to Garden
Materials used: Bronze
Location: Missouri Botanical Garden
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