According to Greek mythology, Medusa was one of the three fearsome sisters, the Gorgons, whose appearance was so terrible that anyone who looked upon them was instantly turned to stone. Medusa was beheaded by the hero Perseus, who looked at her reflection in his shield. But the severed head retained its literally petrifying power. Sandys, renowned for his drawings of women with flowing hair, here makes the link between the dangerous sexuality of the femme fatale and her hair, which traps the unwary male.