"Queen of the
Amazons... Thallestris... was remarkable for her beauty and for
bodily strength, and was admired by her countywomen for bravery." -
Diodorus Siculus(17.77.1)
Myths and the Classical World
The authors
Many famous, infamous and obscure historians and writers have
recorded the stories of the Amazons. Most who wrote during the
Classical Age of Greece were writing stories of cultural
memory. The list of ancient authors includes but is not limited
to: Homer, Herodotus, Plutarch, Diodorus Siculus, "Apollodorus",
Strabo, Euripides, Quintus Smyrnaeus, Aeschylus, Pausanias,
"Hippocrates" and many more.
Homer wrote, probably around the eighth century BCE, of the Trojan
War, which may have occurred about three or four centuries earlier,
if at all.
Herodotus is believed to have lived from around 490 BCE to around 420
BCE. He was born in Halicarnassus and probably traveled
extensively throughout the Greek world of the time.
While attributed to Hippocrates (who was born around 360 BCE), the
so-called founder of the medical ethics, The Hippocratic
Writings, are a collection of different works. Most likely,
they were written by different sources, but probably compiled
sometime during the third century BCE.
Plutarch, in writing of Theseus, was writing of events in the distant
past, as his life spanned from 45 BCE to sometime during the first
century.
The only historian who wrote of events almost contemporary to his
time was Diodorus Siculus, in his account of Alexander the Great's
encounter with the Amazon queen Thallestris.
The
Myths
Of divine origin, the Amazons were thought to have been the offspring
of Ares and the nymph Harmonia. They were reputed as fine
equestrians and warriors talented in archery.
The names of Amazons are commonly recorded as containing the Greek
word for horse: hippo; hence Hippolyta and Hippomache.
This "horse" aspect is thought to have had a double meaning.
First, there was the Greek popular metaphor which likened young girls
to fillies which had to bridled. This could be carried through
to the Amazons, uncontrollable women living without men, who should
be restrained. There was also the suggestion of sexual
wildness. A common Greek belief was that the imagery of
horseriding resembled that of the woman in a dominant sexual
position; an indicator of female impropriety.
The Amazons were recorded by different sources as inhabitants of the
coasts of the Black and Caspian Seas, Thrace, Scythia and Persia, and
northern Africa. In fact, as one legend tells, the present day
Sinope Peninsula on the Black Sea bears the name of an
Amazon. Sinops requested to Zeus that she be allowed to
remain a virgin until her death, he granted her wish and commemorated
the name of land where she lived.
In The Iliad, Homer mentions the conquest of the Amazons by
Bellerophon (Book 6), and more famously of Achille's encounter.
The Amazons, "peers of men", came to aid the Trojans in battle
against the Spartans. During one combat, Achilles
thrusts a spear into
Penthesilea,
the Queen of the Amazons. As she lays dying, she gazes up into
his eyes and he realizes he is hopelessly in love with her, but it is
too late... Later in the epic, when Hector chides him for his
Amazonian love, Achilles becomes angry and kills
Hector.
In The Histories (Book IV, 110-116), Herodotus equates the
Amazons with the Sauromatians, a group of Eurasian
nomads. He claims that after the Greek victory at the river
Thermodon (usually attributed to Heracles), the Greeks kidnapped as
many Amazons as they could, but were less prepared than they thought,
as the Amazons ended up killing them and continued to sail ineptly
until they landed at Cremni (in Scythian territory). Once
ashore, they settled themselves and eventually carried on sexual
relations with the native Scythian men. Eventually the
Scythians abandonned their wives and their land and journeyed with
the Amazons across the Tanais and settled near Lake Maeotis
(sea of Azov); the resulting people were Sauromatian. Herodotus
mentions that their language was a "corrupt form" of Scythian, the
clothes of the women were similar to those of the men and that each
Sauromatian girl was required to kill an enemy in battle before she
was allowed to get married.
Airs, waters, and places, in the Hippocratic collection of
writings, both confirms and contradicts Herodotus' account.
After providing a detailed analysis of how different climatic and
weather conditions affect the health and construct the disposition of
the inhabiting peoples of a land, elaborate descriptions of various
peoples ensue. The Sauromatae are reputed to be a distinct type
or "special race" of Scythians. They live near Lake Maeotis and
their virgin women participate in war, archery and horseback
riding. However the women must kill at least three enemies to
be considered for marriage and are done with fighting once they take
husbands. As babies, their right breasts are deformed by means
of a special hot iron.
These Sauromatians are described in mainly positive terms, strong,
healthy and capable despite their obviously unusual lifestyles
compared those of the writer. The Scythians, in contrast are
specifically differentiated and described in very unflattering
ways. They are totally detached from the outside world and
physically are noted as flabby and sterile.
The Amazons are described in quite another manner by Plutarch in his
biographical account of Theseus. After defining the boundaries
between Ionia and the Peloponnese (what is and what is not Attica),
on the isthmus of Corinth, Theseus travels to Themiskyra (capital of
the Amazons) on a conquest against the Amazons. Even Plutarch
is not sure about what happened; as he is aware of varying versions
of the same story. Regardless of the exact specificities,
Theseus and the Amazon Antiope (also known as Hippolyta) fall in love
and return to Athens. Antiope's Amazonian fellow citizens are
angered by her abduction or seduction (varying according to different
sources) and wage war by laying siege to Athens. The Amazons
were eventually decimated by the Athenians and were forced to
retreat.
One story says that they made peace after three months by means of
Antiope. Another says that Antiope was killed while fighting
alongside Theseus by one of her own, an Amazon named Molpadia.
Yet another story records that she cared for her wounded sisters
incognito, at a location known as Chalcis, following the
battle. Theseus and Antiope were also rumored to be the parents
of a certain son; Hippolytus, who, because of his Amazonian ancestry
was unsuccessful in leading a normal life. He is the subject of
a play by Euripides.
This account of Theseus, along with the rest of Plutarch's record,
are significantly reminiscent of the exploits of Heracles (according
to Plutarch Heracles was a cousin of Theseus). In the fable of
Heracles, chronicled by Diodorus Siculus, Pausanias, "Apollodorus"
and sundry others, Heracles is assigned by Juno to perform a myriad
of seemingly impossible tasks (her retribution for the infidelity of
her husband). His ninth labor is to obtain the girdle of the
Amazon queen, Hippolyta. This task is sometimes considered to
be a symbol of sexual conquest. Another version of the story
tells that after winning a battle against Hippolyta (alternatively
known as Melanippe), he won the girdle as a reward.
These famous tales of the Amazons are all rendered in artistic
interpretation which lend meaning to the contexts of their
narrations.
Classical Greece
Examining the times in which most of the narratives focused on were
written elucidates more about their meanings and symbolism.
Historical interpretation reveals content far richer than just the
storylines.
Athens was rising as a political power and a cohesive nation (in
modern terms) during the heyday of most of the literature.
There are theories that the heroic characters of the myths were
symbolic of the political leaders of the times and that the Amazons
were representative of either foreign barbarians or the embodiment of
stereotypically negative female traits.
The myths of Heracles preceeded those of Theseus and therefore it has
been posited that, in attempts to unite Athens, in a time of war
against Persians and later Spartans, Theseus was made to assume the
position of the founder of Athens, using the exploits of
Heracles. All of Athens could come together then, under this
creation story, with a common ancestry. Legend has it that
Theseus was the son of Aethra and Aegeus; both of whom were of divine
descent. Erechtheus- the famous "son" of Zeus, was the ancestor
of Aegeus while Pelops was the grandfather of Aethra.
Furthermore, Theseus was known as the metaphorical spawn of
Poseidon. With these geneaologies, his role as the founder of
Athens was set.
Furthermore, since he
could credit Heracles as his cousin, the progression of the myths is
obvious. First, he could easily be seen as accompanying his
relative on the famed adventures, later he was competing with his
cousin's accomplishments and fulfilling his family name until finally
he stood alone in his achievements.
Scholars assert that in Ancient Greece, myths and artistic
representation were used as metaphors for contemporary events and
leaders. Hence, the portrayal of Theseus in heroic roles, was
actually a symbol for the Athenian champion of the day. The
polis, by putting its belief in the founding myths was simultaneously
entrusting its stability to leaders like Peisistratos and
Pericles.
By the same token, some credit the popularity of the Amazonian myths
to the appearance of the Persian and Peloponnesian rivals. It
was a useful device to transform, the Persians, seen as enemies to be
defeated, into monsters which could enthusiastically and justifiably
destroyed. The Amazons fit the part.
The same characteristic; hybris, (translated as a type of
outrage) which is seen to be the worst flaw, the one which Athenians
characterize Persians of possessing, is also a flaw inherent in
women, and much stronger in Amazons. It is the corrupting trait
of indulging oneself with frivolous pleasures, being short-tempered
and deceitful. If the myth of Amazons, who already existed as
these exaggerated misonomers, was employed, especially in battles
against heroes such as Theseus, the good guys always won and the bad
guys always lost justifiably. The controllers of Athens became
heroes as their opponents became demons. In addition, at a time
of the changing boundaries of a civilization, and the formation of a
cohesive identity, the Amazons who reputedly lived at the geographic
boundaries of the area formed whatever was threatening outside.
These boundaries may have functioned as more than just territorial
edges.
There are further suggestions that, after the myths were formed to
standardize female behavior within the polis; if the Amazons were
portrayed as undesirable barbarians with inappropriate behavioral
norms, women within the polis would know how not to act, and be
stigmatized for certain actions. In addition, subversive women
could be seen as class of people meant to be conquered. The
sexual symbolism in the attainment of the girdle of Hippolyta by
Achilles has been suggested.
As much as these theories may be true, there also seem to be numerous
inconsistencies. The Amazons were not portrayed as completely
evil in all of the stories; for example, they were strong,
independent and agile according to Hippocratic doctrine. Both
the validity and the inaccuracy of the conflicting ideas can be more
concretely seen in examining the artistic representations of the
time.
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