Amazons

Discuss the Evidence for the Existence of the Amazons in Ancient Times. ~ -~ ~
The image of an Amazon woman perpetuated in modem times is that of a skilled wanior, clad in leather, wielding a sword and riding into battle facing some of Greece's most infamous heroes. This depiction has captured the imaginations of millions in recent times, and prompted the question "what evidence is there for the existence of ancient Amazons?" The most accurate answer to this question is that "most Greeks believed that they existed at one time..(and) There is, in fact, no way historically to deny their existence and no way to prove it"l. The debates over this question have raged for centuries, and there are numerous theories. From ancients like Herodotus and Plutarch, to modem experts like Jeannine Davis -Kimball and W.M. Blake Tyrrell, they all hypothesize on who where the Amazons and did they actually exist? Touted in ancient Greece for their barbaric nature, the Amazon legend was used in the patriarchal society as a warning to women, and to keep them domesticated
within society. In modem times the image of the Amazons has been applauded as an illustration for feminism, and the ability of women to successfully challenge male dominance. The legend of the Amazons has always been popular, from its links to Hercules and Achilles in Greek Mythology, to the highly successful "Xena" series, people have always wanted to authenticate the existence of such an extraordinary society. Over the centuries the depiction of"the Amazon" has evolved to incorporate "a combination offact, mythology and male fantasy"2 , whilst it's now up to historians to determine the evidence for the existence of the Amazons in ancient times.
The term " Amazon" is believed to have come from the Greek "a+mazos",
which means "without breast". This came from the belief that "female children in the Amazon tribes were said to have their left breast seared during childhood to facilitate the use of a bow"3. It is typically believed that Amazons existed as a wholly female society. However, the ancient sources state that there were men, but that they were relegated to servants and home keepers as women were in "normal" societies.
Diodorus Siculus, a Greek historian from c. 90 -c. 30 BC, gives a detailed account of Amazonian society:
"We are told, namely, that there was once in the western parts of Libya, on the bounds of the inhabited world; a race which was ruled by women and followed a manner of life unlike that which prevails among us, For it was the custom among them that the
women should practice the arts of war, and be required to serve in the army for a fixed period, during which time they maintained their virginity,' then, when the years of their service in the field had expired; they went in to the men for the procreation of children, but they kept in their hands the administration of the magistracies and of all the affairs of state. The men, however, like our married women, spent their days about
the house, carrying out the orders which were given to them by their wives,' and they took no part in military campaigns or in the exercise of .free citizenship in the affairs
of the community by virtue of which they might become presumptuous and rise up against the women, When their children were born the babies were turned over to the men, who brought them up on milk and such cooked foods as were appropriate to the
age of the infants. II 4
1 Blake Tyuell, W.M., 1984 Amazons: A Studv In Athenian Mvthmaking, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, The John Hopkins University Press. pg. 23
2 Amazons, http:/ /www .geocities.com/wllesley/1582/amazons.htm1?200514, 14/12/2005
3 Amazons, www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/aegean/amazons/amazonwho.htm1, 12/3/2006
4 Part 1 of Women Warriors: The Amazons, 2Oth January 2004, http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f- news/1061372/POsts, 16/3/06