Europa - Rincón de la Victoria, Spain - Epic Beings and Creatures on Waymarking.com

This monumental sculpture (3.25 m height and 2600 kg) by José Seguiri depicts Europa and the bull (Zeus), recreating one of the most famous mythological legends of antiquity.

The plaque relates the legend (in Spanish). It reads:

Un día Zeus vio a Europa jugando en la playa de Sidón. Inflamado de amor por su belleza, se transforma en un toro blanco y se sienta a los pies de la doncella. Ésta después de vencer el susto inicial tras comprobar la mansedumbre del animal, lo acaricia y acaba por montar a sus lomos, momento que aprovecha el falso toro para lanzarse al mar y dirigirse velozmente a Creta. Allí se une con la joven junto a una fuente, bajo una platanera, que en memoria de estos amores obtiene el privilegio de no perder nunca las hojas.

From Wikipedia:

"In Greek mythology Europa was a Phoenician woman of high lineage, from whom the name of the continent Europe has ultimately been taken. The story of her abduction by Zeus in the form of a white bull was a Cretan story; as Kerényi points out "most of the love-stories concerning Zeus originated from more ancient tales describing his marriages with goddesses. This can especially be said of the story of Europa".

Europa's earliest literary reference is in the Iliad, which is commonly dated to the 8th century B.C. Another early reference to her is in a fragment of the Hesiodic Catalogue of Women, discovered at Oxyrhynchus. The earliest vase-painting securely identifiable as Europa, dates from mid-7th century B.C" (visit link)

Time Period: Ancient Approximate Date of Epic Period: 8th century B.C. Epic Type: Mythical Exhibit Type: Figure, Statue, 3D Art

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