Did the Amazons really exist? - Adrienne Mayor
-
0:08 - 0:10Since the time of Homer,
-
0:10 - 0:15ancient stories told of fierce warriors
dwelling beyond the Mediterranean world, -
0:15 - 0:19striking fear into the mightiest
empires of antiquity. -
0:19 - 0:22Their exploits were
recounted by many epic poets. -
0:22 - 0:28They fought in the legendary Trojan War
and their grand army invaded Athens. -
0:28 - 0:30Jason and the Argonauts
passed by their shores, -
0:30 - 0:33barely avoiding their deadly arrows.
-
0:33 - 0:37These formidable fighters faced off
against the greatest champions of myth: -
0:37 - 0:38Heracles,
-
0:38 - 0:39Theseus,
-
0:39 - 0:41and Achilles.
-
0:41 - 0:46And every single one
of these warriors was a woman. -
0:46 - 0:51The war-loving Amazons,
"the equals of men" in courage and skill, -
0:51 - 0:54were familiar to everyone in
ancient Greece. -
0:54 - 0:58Amazon battle scenes decorated
the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis; -
0:58 - 1:03paintings and statues of Amazons
adorned temples and public spaces. -
1:03 - 1:06Little girls played with Amazon dolls,
-
1:06 - 1:10and Amazons were a favorite subject
on Greek vase paintings. -
1:10 - 1:12In Greek art and literature,
-
1:12 - 1:15they were depicted as daring
and desirable, -
1:15 - 1:17but also terrifying and deadly,
-
1:17 - 1:21and doomed to die
at the hands of Greek heroes. -
1:21 - 1:25Were Amazons merely figures of myth,
or something more? -
1:25 - 1:28It was long assumed
that they were imaginary, -
1:28 - 1:30like the cyclops and centaurs.
-
1:30 - 1:33But curiously enough,
stories from ancient Egypt, -
1:33 - 1:34Persia,
-
1:34 - 1:35the Middle East,
-
1:35 - 1:36Central Asia,
-
1:36 - 1:37India,
-
1:37 - 1:38and China
-
1:38 - 1:41also featured Amazon-like warrior women.
-
1:41 - 1:47And Amazons were described in ancient
historical accounts, not just myths. -
1:47 - 1:52Writers like Herodotus, Plato,
and Strabo never doubted their existence. -
1:52 - 1:56So who were the real women
warriors known as Amazons? -
1:56 - 2:01Ancient historians located
the Amazon homeland in Scythia, -
2:01 - 2:02the vast territory stretching from
-
2:02 - 2:06the Black Sea across
the steppes of Central Asia. -
2:06 - 2:09This immense region was populated
by nomadic tribes -
2:09 - 2:11whose lives centered on horses,
-
2:11 - 2:12archery,
-
2:12 - 2:13and warfare.
-
2:13 - 2:19Their culture flourished for about
1,000 years beginning around 800 BC. -
2:19 - 2:23Feared by Greeks, Persians, and
the Chinese, the Scythians left -
2:23 - 2:27no written records.
But we can find clues in how -
2:27 - 2:30their neighbors described them,
as well as in archaeology. -
2:30 - 2:33Scythians' ancestors were
the first to ride horses -
2:33 - 2:36and they invented the recurve bow.
-
2:36 - 2:42And, because a female mounted archer
could be as fast and as deadly as a male, -
2:42 - 2:45all children were trained
to ride and shoot. -
2:45 - 2:49Women hunted and fought alongside men,
using the same weapons. -
2:49 - 2:52The harsh landscape
and their nomadic lifestyle -
2:52 - 2:55created its own form of equality.
-
2:55 - 3:01This amazed the ancient Greeks,
whose women led restricted indoor lives. -
3:01 - 3:04The earliest stories of the Scythians,
and Amazons, -
3:04 - 3:07may have been exaggerated rumors.
-
3:07 - 3:11But as the Greeks began to trade around
the Black Sea and further east, -
3:11 - 3:14their portrayals became more realistic.
-
3:14 - 3:18Early depictions of Amazons showed them
with Greek weapons and armor. -
3:18 - 3:20But in later representations,
-
3:20 - 3:22they wielded bows and battle-axes,
-
3:22 - 3:23rode horses,
-
3:23 - 3:26and wore pointed caps
and patterned trousers -
3:26 - 3:29characteristic of steppe nomads.
-
3:29 - 3:33Until recently, no one was sure
how strong the links were -
3:33 - 3:36between Scythians
and the Amazons of Greek myth. -
3:36 - 3:41But recent archaeological discoveries
have provided ample evidence. -
3:41 - 3:46More than 1,000 ancient Scythian kurgans,
or burial mounds, have been excavated, -
3:46 - 3:49containing skeletons and weapons.
-
3:49 - 3:51Archaeologists had previously assumed
-
3:51 - 3:54that weapons could only
belong to male warriors. -
3:54 - 3:57But modern DNA analysis so far
-
3:57 - 4:00has revealed that about 300 skeletons
buried with weapons -
4:00 - 4:04belong to females ranging
in age from 10 to 45, -
4:04 - 4:07and more are being found every year.
-
4:07 - 4:10The women's skeletons
show battle injuries: -
4:10 - 4:12ribs slashed by swords,
-
4:12 - 4:14skulls bashed by battle-axes,
-
4:14 - 4:17and arrows embedded in bones.
-
4:17 - 4:20In classical art and writings,
-
4:20 - 4:25the fearsome Amazons were always portrayed
as brave and heroic. -
4:25 - 4:27In male-dominated classical Greece,
however, -
4:27 - 4:34the very idea of strong women who gloried
in freedom and war aroused mixed feelings. -
4:34 - 4:38And yet, the Greeks were also drawn
to egalitarian ideals. -
4:38 - 4:42Is it possible that the mythic realm
of thrilling Amazon tales -
4:42 - 4:46was a way to imagine women
and men as equal companions?
- Title:
- Did the Amazons really exist? - Adrienne Mayor
- Speaker:
- Adrienne Mayor
- Description:
-
View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/did-the-amazons-really-exist-adrienne-mayor
It was long assumed that Amazons, the fierce and fearsome women warriors of Greece, were imaginary. But curiously enough, stories from ancient Egypt, Persia, the Middle East, Central Asia, India and China also featured Amazon-like warrior women. And Amazons were described in ancient historical accounts, not just myths. Who were the real women warriors known as Amazons? Adrienne Mayor investigates.
Lesson by Adrienne Mayor, animation by Silvia Prietov.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 05:02
Michelle Mehrtens edited English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? | ||
Michelle Mehrtens edited English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? | ||
Michelle Mehrtens edited English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? | ||
Bethany Cutmore-Scott approved English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? | ||
Bethany Cutmore-Scott accepted English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? | ||
Michelle Mehrtens edited English subtitles for Did the Amazons really exist? |