We have been presented with a couple of different women from Greek mythology so far as part of our blog series covering Whitman Publishing’s 100 Greatest Women on Coins. However, the story of this next woman is not well known but her importance is greater than we all know, especially in relation to the gods. Author Ron Guth will help us understand her role and the myth that has spawned multiple versions of her existence.
#37 – Leda and The Swan
A figure known from Greek mythology because of her interaction with the god Zeus, Leda produced four offspring, all of which became more famous than their mother. One of those children was Helen of Troy, the beautiful woman that incited the Trojan War after she was kidnapped.
Leda and the Swan is a myth that developed over time, as such the details are mixed. Generalizing the story, Leda’s beauty attracted the attention of Zeus. He would then take the form of a swan and force himself upon her, leading to the birth of two eggs (or three depending on which version of the story). Castor and Pollux, also known as the Gemini Twins in astrology, came from the first egg. Clytemnestra and her sister Helen came from the second egg. The two would go on to marry brothers Agamemnon (the king of Mycenae) and Menelaus. In every modern sense, Leda was raped by Zeus, but the nature of the gods in Greek mythology is unpredictable and erratic when it comes to how they dealt with humans.
Leda and the Swan became massive in art and sculpture in the Renaissance. Some of the renderings and depictions became even more erotic and explicit than the story itself. Artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Salvador Dali, and more even created their own versions of the myth.
When it comes to coins, the only one available depicting Leda and the Swan is the 2014 Cook Islands $20 coin. It uses the famous painting by Peter Paul Rubens, based on the lost painting by Michelangelo, on the obverse.
Collecting difficulty, according to Guth, is easy but limited to just one option.