The stories of Perseus are an excellent example of an ancient oral history which has devolved into myth. His legend aligns nicely with the history of Mycenaean-era Greece.
To begin with, Perseus is a son of Zeus. As far as we know, he’s the first half-human son of this god. (If you know of any earlier examples, please let us know in the comments.)
The Zeus-cult arose from the earlier Poseidon-centered
Olympian religion around the 15th century BCE.
So Perseus couldn’t have been from an earlier time.
His mother was a princess of Argos, so Perseus was born heir to the throne.
This also takes us to the 15th century, a time when the palaces of the Argolid rose in prominence.
Later in life, it’s told, he was the founder of the palace at Mycenae, the most powerful of Greek palace centers from the 14th to the 12th century.
Mycenae and the Argolid was a major center of Greek power
in the late Bronze age, and into the Iron age.
(Note the prominence of the Argolid among the forces
assembled for the siege of Troy in book II of Iliad.)
Perseus is a hero of Mycenae and the Argolid of the late Bronze Age.
And his legend reflects this.
Perseus is remembered for two adventures in particular; both nicely fit the history of this period.
The killing of Medusa is easy to read as a memory of the displacement of the Minoans by the Mycenaeans. (The son of Zeus kills the Snake-Goddess; you do the math.)
And as we’ve observed [LINK], the Rescue of Andromeda was a story invented to tie Perseus and Mycenae to the family of Belus and Agenor – a political statement by the Mycenaeans that they were now a part of the family of the Mediterranean.
Oh, and to rescue the princess, the son of Zeus has to kill the sea-monster sent by Poseidon – an episode reflecting the new cultural reality of Zeus as first among Olympians.
Both of these stories align with the history of 14th century Greece.
While there are fantastic elements added to each of these stories,
the core narratives are clear allegories
of historical and cultural memories of this period.
At the end of his adventures, Perseus finds himself on the throne of Argos.
But he feels restless, and moves on to found the palace-center of Mycenae.
The folk of Tiryns, the other palace-center of the Argolid, tell that Perseus ruled there briefly as well.
Perseus was a hero of the Bronze Age Argolid
Displaced in the Iron Age by Herakles,
his half-brother and great grandson [LINK]