WEBVTT

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Since the time of Homer,

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ancient stories told of fierce warriors 
dwelling beyond the Mediterranean world,

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striking fear into the mightiest 
empires of antiquity.

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Their exploits were
recounted by many epic poets.

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They fought in the legendary Trojan War 
and their grand army invaded Athens.

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Jason and the Argonauts 
passed by their shores,

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barely avoiding their deadly arrows.

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These formidable fighters faced off 
against the greatest champions of myth:

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Heracles,

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Theseus,

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and Achilles.

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And every single one 
of these warriors was a woman.

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The war-loving Amazons,
"the equals of men" in courage and skill,

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were familiar to everyone in
Ancient Greece.

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Amazon battle scenes decorated 
the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis;

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paintings and statues of Amazons
adorned temples and public spaces.

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Little girls played with Amazon dolls,

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and Amazons were a favorite subject 
on Greek vase paintings.

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In Greek art and literature,

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they were depicted as daring 
and desirable

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but also terrifying and deadly,

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and doomed to die 
at the hands of Greek heroes.

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Were Amazons merely figures of myth,
or something more?

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It was long assumed 
that they were imaginary,

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like the Cyclops and centaurs.

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But curiously enough, 
stories from Ancient Egypt,

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Persia,

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the Middle East,

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Central Asia,

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India,

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and China

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also featured Amazon-like warrior women.

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And Amazons were described in ancient
historical accounts, not just myths.

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Writers like Herodotus, Plato, 
and Strabo never doubted their existence.

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So who were the real women 
warriors known as Amazons?

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Ancient historians located 
the Amazon homeland in Scythia,

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the vast territory stretching from

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the Black Sea across 
the steppes of Central Asia.

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This immense region was populated 
by nomadic tribes

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whose lives centered on horses,

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archery,

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and warfare.

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Their culture flourished for about
1,000 years beginning around 800 BC.

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Feared by Greeks, Persians, and
the Chinese, the Scythians left

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no written records.
But we can find clues in how

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their neighbors described them,
as well as in archaeology.

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Scythians' ancestors were 
the first to ride horses

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and they invented the recurve bow.

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And, because a female mounted archer 
could be as fast and as deadly as a male,

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all children were trained 
to ride and shoot.

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Women hunted and fought alongside men,
using the same weapons.

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The harsh landscape 
and their nomadic lifestyle

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created its own form of equality.

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This amazed the ancient Greeks, 
whose women led restricted indoor lives.

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The earliest stories of the Scythians, 
and Amazons,

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may have been exaggerated rumors.

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But as the Greeks began to trade around 
the Black Sea and further east,

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their portrayals became more realistic.

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Early depictions of Amazons showed them 
with Greek weapons and armor.

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But in later representations,

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they wielded bows and battle-axes,

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rode horses,

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and wore pointed caps 
and patterned trousers

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characteristic of steppe nomads.

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Until recently, no one was sure 
how strong the links were

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between Scythians 
and the Amazons of Greek myth.

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But recent archaeological discoveries 
have provided ample evidence.

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More than 1,000 ancient Scythian kurgans,
or burial mounds, have been excavated,

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containing skeletons and weapons.

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Archaeologists had previously assumed

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that weapons could only 
belong to male warriors.

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But modern DNA analysis so far

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has revealed that about 300 skeletons 
buried with weapons

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belong to females ranging
in age from 10 to 45,

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and more are being found every year.

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The women's skeletons 
show battle injuries:

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ribs slashed by swords,

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skulls bashed by battle-axes,

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and arrows embedded in bones.

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In classical art and writings,

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the fearsome Amazons were always portrayed
as brave and heroic.

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In male-dominated classical Greece, 
however,

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the very idea of strong women who gloried 
in freedom and war aroused mixed feelings.

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And yet, the Greeks were also drawn
to egalitarian ideals.

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Is it possible that the mythic realm 
of thrilling Amazon tales

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was a way to imagine women
and men as equal companions?