The Temple of Artemis with a famous Gorgon pediment stands on the island of Corfu.
The Archaic Temple of Artemis at Corfu was built around 580 BCE, when the island was known as Corcyra. Its western pediment contains a large central image of a Gorgon, usually identified as Medusa, flanked by two smaller figures. The design is one of the most important surviving examples of early Greek monumental sculpture.
The Gorgon’s placement on a temple of Artemis shows how mythic images could serve a protective function in Greek art. The frightening face, prominent eyes, and energetic posture were intended to repel danger. This protective visual idea is often called the gorgoneion.
The Corfu sculpture is not a scene identical to every literary version of Perseus’s story. Instead, it is a monumental mythological image arranged to suit the architecture and the visual conventions of the Archaic period. The remains are associated with the Archaeological Museum of Corfu.