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 Study for Orion (1999) pencil, vellum (detail)  Study for Orion (1999) pencil, vellum (detail) |
 Study for Orion (1999) pencil, vellum Orion was inspired by the Greek myth of Orion who boasted that so great was his might and skill as a hunter that he could kill all the animals on the face of the Earth. Gaea, Goddess of Earth, was alarmed at such a boastful and inappropriate statement. Gaea decided that Orion must be killed just in case he might one day decide to carry out his boast. So Gaea sent a giant scorpion to Orion and ordered the beast to sting Orion. As mighty as Orion was, after only a brief battle, the scorpion managed to deliver the hunter a deadly sting. Scorpius stung Orion on the heel (at the star Rigel). Orion and the scorpion were given honored places in the sky, but they were placed at opposite ends of the great sky dome so that they would never engage in battle again. |
| © Megan Wilson, 2003 |