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Throughout history, people have more than once had to learn the names of fatal women, whose beauty was sung by poets in their works, many artists aspired to paint their portraits, and some men were even going to put the whole world at their feet.
Such ladies attracted people not only with their beautiful appearance, but they also had a special mystery and femininity that not everyone can comprehend.
Further in the article, you can find a list of ten famous beauties, whose names were glorified in ancient myths and legends.
10 Sieve
The heroine of the ancient Indian epic and the wife of Rama enjoyed deep respect in India.
According to legend, Sita was endowed with unprecedented strength and could budge the chest in which Shiva’s bow was kept. In this regard, her father was ready to marry his daughter only to someone who turned out to be stronger than her. Rama was able to pull the string from the magic bow, and Sita married him.
Further, according to the Ramayana, the couple go into exile in the forest, where Sita is kidnapped by Rakshasas, but her husband rescues her from captivity.
The time has come to return from exile, Rama began to rule Ayodhya, but his subjects were unhappy that his wife was captured by a Rakshasa, then she was sent to the forest.
There Sita was sheltered by a sage, and soon her sons were born. When the children grew up, they went to war with their father Rama and defeated him. The war was stopped, the sons recognized their father, and Sita decided to perform the rite of sati (self-immolation).
9. Ariadne
The heroine of ancient Greek myths was the daughter of the king of Crete, Minos.
It was Ariadne, according to legend, who decided to help Theseus save her people from the Minotaur (a monster to which the inhabitants of Crete brought tribute in the form of seven young girls and boys).
The monster lived in the labyrinth, Theseus decided to kill him, and so that he could easily get out of the dwelling of the Minotaur, Ariadne gave him a magic ball of thread.
After defeating the monster, Theseus and Ariadne fled from Crete to Naxos. There are several endings to the legend of Ariadne and Theseus. According to one, she dies from the arrows of Artemis, according to another, her husband leaves her, and soon after that she becomes the wife of Dionysus.
The image of Ariadne is often used in art. She was depicted on canvases by such artists as Titian, Delacroix, Lovis Corinth and many others. She is also mentioned in literary works.
8. Marian
According to legend, the maiden Marian surpassed Helen of Troy in her beauty.
The meeting of the girl and Robin Hood took place in Sherwood Forest, where she fled from the claims of the King of England, John.
But when rumors reached her that her father had fled to France, she decided to return home to look after him.
Rumors of her return reached the king, he sent her several letters of love, but they remained unanswered. Then the king decided to take revenge on the beauty by sending a poisoned bracelet with a messenger, wearing which Marian soon died.
7. Salome
The princess of the Jews, the daughter of Herodias and the stepdaughter of Herod Antipas, was mentioned in the New Testament.
According to the legends, Salome was incredibly beautiful, and it was her dance that led Herod Antipas to agree to fulfill her every desire, she also asked for the head of John the Baptist at the instigation of her mother.
In art, the image of Salome attracted such painters as Botticelli, Titian, Caravaggio.
She was also mentioned in literary works by such poets and writers as Oscar Wilde, Heinrich Heine, Alexander Blok and some others.
6. Lorelei
The Lorelei myth was created in 1801 by the poet Clemens Brentano. He was inspired to write a ballad about Lorelei by a rock on the east bank of the Rhine, the origin of which was fanned by many romantic legends. The name “Lorelei” before becoming a household name, had a translation from the German “whispering rock”.
The image of the beautiful Lorelei created by Brentano was also liked by other literary figures, as well as by composers; Heinrich Heine and Franz Liszt used it in their works.
5. Brunhilde
Brunnhilde or Brynhild is a character in the German-Scandinavian epic.
According to the myths, she was the wife of Gunther, who was the ruler of Burgundy.
Her image was sung in the “Song of the Nibelugs”, often used in cinema. An asteroid is also named after her.
4. Andromeda
The beauty is the heroine of the ancient epic, according to which she was the daughter of King Kefei and his wife Cassiopeia.
The girl was sacrificed to a sea monster, but Perseus saved her.
Her image was used in art, she was mentioned in the tragedies of Euripides and Pierre Corneille. The artist Rembrandt painted a picture of her in 1630.
Also, the name of the Greek beauty began to serve as the name of the constellation. In addition, it is used in botany.
3. Guinevere
The wife of King Arthur became one of the first collective and reference images of the Beautiful Lady, which were widespread in medieval English literature.
According to legend, King Arthur married Guinevere to create a political alliance with her father, although his tutor strongly advised against it.
It is also known from myths that the knight Lancelot courted the queen. Guinevere was not respected at court, at first she was accused of poisoning the knights, but Lancelot stood up for her. Then they wanted to burn her on charges of infidelity, but the faithful knight again saved the queen, taking her to the monastery.
After the death of King Arthur, Lancelot invites his widow to leave with him, but she refuses and becomes a nun.
The image of the queen has often been used in cinema, popular culture, literature, astronomy and painting.
2. Isolde
Isolde and her lover, Tristan, are characters in medieval literature. According to one of the works, Tristan is an orphan, he comes to the court of his uncle, King Mark, assists him in defeating the giant who strangled the population of the kingdom with tribute.
Further, according to legend, the young man goes to look for a wife for his uncle and finds Isolde, the young people fall in love with each other. King Mark learns about their love, the lovers run away, but they are found, and Iseult is returned to her husband. Tristan goes to Britain, serves the king of this country, for his exploits he gets his daughter, who is also called Isolde, as his wife.
The plot of the story ends with the death of lovers who were not destined to live together, they are buried side by side, their graves are overgrown with blackthorn flowers.
1. Elena Troyan
Helen the Beautiful or Trojan in the mythology of the ancient Greeks was the most beautiful woman in the world.
A huge number of men dreamed of marrying a girl, but her father allowed her to choose a husband on her own, and she became the wife of Menelaus. Further, according to the myths, Helen was abducted by Paris, which was the reason for the Trojan war.
The image of the beautiful queen was often used in art, she was mentioned in the tragedies of Greek authors, cinema.