Perseus was the hero who used Medusa’s head to petrify Atlas.
During his return journey, Perseus encountered Atlas, the Titan associated with bearing the heavens. In Ovid’s account, Atlas refused Perseus hospitality or feared a prophecy involving a descendant of Zeus. Perseus then revealed Medusa’s severed head, turning Atlas to stone. The resulting mountain range was identified with the Atlas Mountains.
This episode is separate from Perseus’s rescue of Andromeda and his later return to Seriphos. It shows that Medusa’s head remained a weapon after the Gorgon’s death and allowed Perseus to defeat enemies without a conventional battle.
The story also explains why Atlas is sometimes pictured as a mountain rather than as a living Titan. Different ancient and later sources vary in their treatment of Atlas, but the petrification episode is especially associated with Ovid’s Metamorphoses.