In Perseus, Dali pays homage to the Florentine Renaissance sculptor and goldsmith, Benvenuto Cellini, whose great bronze figure of Perseus was commissioned by the Medici Duke, Cosimo I, in the 1550s. In both sculptures, the ancient Greek hero Perseus is poised over the decapitated body of the Gorgon, Medusa, whose gaze turned men to stone. The goddess Athena had been responsible for turning the mortal into a winged monster with glaring eyes, huge teeth, brazen claws, and serpent locks. Athena's advise to Perseus, that he should look only at the Gorgon's reflection in his shield in order to kill her, assured his victory. Dali is most associated with the French Surrealist Movement. He began sculpting in the 1930s after making several trips to Italy. This was also the period during which he was producing his iconic "hand painted dream photographs."

Dali's representation of the Virgin pays homage to the many images of the Virgin painted by Italian Renaissance master Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio). Dali sets his Madonna in a traditional Florentine setting with the guardian angel of Florence and a small child adoring the Virgin in the background. In a litany to the Virgin, one of the titles given her is "The Mystical Rose," an image of mystical rather than physical beauty.