The following is meant to give some detail of the lives of some 61 Amazons (the title of this page is obviously not literal!) whose names are found mostly through the following authors and texts:
Aeschylus, Suppliant Maidens/Women; Hesiod and the Homerica
Alexander
Apollodorus, Epitome
Apollonius Rhodius/of Rhodes
Arctinus of Miletus, Aethiopis
Aristedes, Panathenic Oration
Aristophanes, Lysistrata
Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander
Cleidemus, Atthis
Demosthenes, Funeral Oration
Dictys Cretensis/of Crete* (of doubt)
Dio Cassius
Dio Chrysostom, Discourses
Diodorus Siculus
Dionysius Scytobrachion
Ephorus
Euripides, Hippolytus; Heracles
Eustathius,
Hecataeus
Hellanicus
Herodotus, Histories
Hippocrates, Airs, Waters, Places
Homer, Illiad
Hyginus, Fables
Isocrates, Panathenaicus; Panegyricus
Justinus, History of the World
Lycophron
Lysias, Funeral Oration
Ovid
Pausanias
Pherecydes, Theseis
Philochorus, Hellenica
Pindar
Plato, Menexus
Pliny the Elder Plutarch, Theseus; Pericles; Alexander
Proclus
Pseudo-Plutarch, On Rivers
Quintus Smyrnaeus/of Smyrna
Scholiast
Seneca, Hercules Furens
Servius
Socrates, Menexus
Strabo: Stephanus Byzantium; Geography
Tzetzes, Posthomerica
Valerius Flaccus
Virgil (Vergil), Aeneid
Some of the names of these Amazons, however, are just that, and nothing is known of them.
This list of Amazons, or even authors and thier works, is by no means conclusive, and any comments, suggestions, additions or corrections can reach me (S. Wilson) at darkworrior@chickmail.com.
The names are sorted alphabetically.
(index I-Z contained in part 2)
1. Aella. One of the most honored of the nation, who were called to stand against Hercules as he prepared to attack the tribe for the belt of Hippolyte. Aella was one of a few who were strong, daring, tough, and fearless, that were formed to oppose Hercules himself. Aella, who was known to be swift, was the first to attack him. He however was swifter, and she became his first casualty.
2. Agave. No information.
3. Alcibe (Alcibia). No information.
4. Alcippe. One of the group who faced Hercules in the battle for Hippolyte's belt. A vow of chastity, which was held in high esteem in the nation, was confirmed upon her death.
5. Anaea. The Amazon for whom the town Anaea in Caria was named. No other information.
6. Andro. One of the Amazons that accompanied Penthesileia on her journey to Troy, who fought in the battle with her and died.
7. Androdaira (Androdaixa). One of the leaders of the Amazons who fought and died at Troy for Penthesileia. She was killed by Achilles.
8. Andromache. Queen of the Amazons, possibly in another interpretation of the 9th labor of Hercules, or possibly even yet another representation or name for Queen Hippolyte/Antiope/Melanippe in the same mythological conquest. Most early tradition seems to point to Andromache as being the only queen present during the Heraclean attack, and it is general consensus, as far as Theseus is concerned, that if Theseus is present in Hercules expedition, then the ruling Amazons' name is Antiope, and if he is not, then her name is Hippolyte.
Hercules later killed Andromache when the battle between her people and his pirates began. A vase depicts Hercules running Andromache through whilst behind him the Amazaon Iphito kills a Greek, and behind her, the Amazon Glauce is killed by the Greek Telamon.
9. Antandre. No information.
10. Antibrote. No information.
11. Antioche. Possibly a variation on Antiope. No information.
12. Antiope. A Queen in some texts, in others, a Princess. Sister of Hippolyte, Penthesileia, and Melanippe. Her name is also confused with the first and the latter, and likewise those names are sometimes seen as synonymous with Antiope.
She may have actually been the daughter of Hippolyte, if not the daughter of Otrera, the mother of the founding Amazons; when Antiope is synonymous with Hippolyte and vice-versa, Otrera is seen as her mother or her sister. The main body of the story is that Theseus, who accompanied Hercules on his quest for Hippolyte's girdle on his 9h labor, kidnapped Antiope after the battle for the girdle had ended and Hercules and company had escaped. Theseus and his chums stayed behind to complete this business of abduction, to return to Athens (his kingdom) with the prize: a tamed Amazon.
Other stories say she visited him on his ship and even willingly accompanied him back to Athens. Whatever may have been, the Amazons were angered, and led a massive expedition to Attica. They must have marched, because there is never any record of them having ships or possessing any sailing knowledge. It seems likely they would have had ships, for not only were they successful conquerors, they were as well a coastal population.
Apparently, Otrera launched the expedition to Athens, along with Hippolyte and Melanippe, and however long it took them to reach Attica was long enough for Antiope to love Theseus, marry him, and bear a son with him called Hippolytus (though the son could have been conceived while still at port in Themiskyra).
The Amazons arrived and camped outside Athens for days, then attacked. The war was bloody, and lasted about three months. Molpadia broke into the royal court at last to seize Antiope, only to find Antiope fighting at Theseus' side, and killed her for betraying not only her people, but herself.
Alternately, Antiope found out her husband was marrying another woman (for political gain), and stormed his wedding reception in anger. There she attacked the guests before he killed her. Another version says Penthesileia accidentally killed Hippolyte here, if Hippolyte was the one Theseus kidnapped. It seems likely that it was Hippolyte that was kidnapped, hence her son's name. At battle's end, Otrera or Hippolyte called retreat, and she went to Megara and died from utter grief. Antiope's tomb was shown in Athens for several hundred years, located near the temple of Gaea.
13. Asteria. One of the warriors was was killed when Hercules tried to take Hippolyte's girdle. She, Deianeira, Marpe, Tecmessa, and Alcippe were killed together.
14. Bremusa. One of Penthesileia's
entourage
at Troy. Called "glorious", apparently one of
Penthesileia's pets. She was killed at Troy.
15. Celaeno. She, Eurybia, and Phoebe all
attacked Hercules shoulder-to-shoulder when his
search for Hippolyte's girdle became violent;
despite
having been favorites of Artemis and as such fated
to
never miss a kill in a hunt, neither warrior could
even hit Hercules.
16. Clonie. Accompanied Penthesileia to
Troy, and died there.
17. Clymene. No information.
18. Cyme. A commander under Myrine for whom the city of the same name in Asia Minor was named, by Myrine.
19. Deianeira. One of the sixth attack wave
against Hercules when he came to Themiskyra and
eventually tried to violently take the famous girdle
of Hippolyte; she, Marpe, Tecmessa, Alcippe, and
Asteria all died together.
20. Derimacheia. One of the warriors
accompanying Penthesileia to Troy, who died
there.
21. Derinoe. One of the warriors
accompanying Penthesileia to Troy, who died
there.
22. Dioxippe. No information.
23. Eriboea. The fourth to die in Hercules'
attack of the Amazons for the Hippolytean girdle;
she
had previously said that because of her absolute
courage and bravery that she'd always displayed in
the Amazon war games, that she needed no help to
overcome Hercules.
24. Euryale. According to Valerius Flaccus,
the warrior Aeetes considered this Amazon like a
daughter. She was an Amazon Princess, and an ally
to
Aeetes against the Scythians. She drove her chariot
through battlefields, trampling the bodies of the
dead as she went, which not only insulted their
leaders, but also their gods -- in itself it was an
act of extreme courage, although it seems two dice
short of a Chevy. As she rode through raging
battles, she hefted her great labrys and slew
enemies
with ease all around her. When they Argonaut
Canthus
was killed by a Scythian who then tried to claim the
body as a trophy, a fight broke out for possession.
Euryale rode in on her chariot, and carried Canthus
away to safety, indebting Aeetes to her forever.
25. Eurybia. See Celaeno.
26. Evandre (Euandre). She
accompanied Penthesileia to Troy, and died there.
27. Glauce. Another name for Hippolyte,
Melanippe, and/or Antiope, assumed since Glauce's
history and death mirrors that of Hippolyte's,
though
she may have died during the fighting that broke out
during the wedding of Theseus and Phaedra.
28. Gryne. The Grynian Grove in Asia Minor
was named for her, says Virgil, because supposedly
the sun god Apollo made love to her there.
29. Harmothoe. One of the warriors
accompanying Penthesileia to Troy. She was called
"dark-eyed", meaning that she was both of
non-Scandinavian descent, and as such was prized by
Penthesileia. She died at Troy.
30. Hippo. One of the first queens of the
Amazons, also believed to be the shortened form of
'Hippolyte', who helped to found the great cities of
Smyrna, Myrina, Ephesus and Cyrene.
At Ephesus before the great Temple of Artemis
was
constructed, Hippo had lively ceremonies for Artemis
under a beech tree where a statue of Artemis had
been
erected. Here she and her followers offered their
corollary sacrifices to their goddess, after which
began a ceremonial dance around the shrine. In the
shield dance, they carried rattling quivers and beat
the ground in unison to the rhythm of pipes. The
Temple of Artemis which was later built around this
shrine, outshone the Temple of Apollo at Delphi in
magnificence. It is included as one of the Seven
Wonders of the Ancient World, keeping company with
such things as the Pyramids and the Hanging Gardens
of Babylon, although it no longer exists.
31. Hippolyte. The greatest, if not the
most
famous, Queen of the Amazons, who ruled the nation's
capital of Themiskyra on the banks of the Thermodon
River, on the south Black Sea coast. Although her
name is the source of problems when it comes to
figuring out exactly who she was and when she lived,
the main account of her life is that she was the
owner of the famous girdle that Hercules came
searching for in his 9th labor.
The girdle was from her father, Ares, as symbol of
her supremacy. When Hera, Queen of the Gods and
enemy of Hercules, spread rumor that Hercules
planned
to kill the Amazons, they battled him; Hercules won,
taking the girdle.
A curiosity arises in the several account of her
name, as far as getting her mixed up with her
sisters
Glauce, Antiope, and Melanippe: Hippolyte may have
been even a dynastic name, like that of Minos, who
was though to have been a single king who ruled
Krete
long before Athens was born. It was discovered that
"Minos" was a title, such as "high king" or
"honorable", that had belonged to a string of rulers
at the "Palace of Minos" there.
Where the story diverges from the expected path at
the end of the 9th labor battle, is where confusion
begins. Antiope may have been given to King Theseus
of Athens, who may have accompanied Hercules on his
journey, as a prize. Antiope may also have been
abducted at a separate time when Theseus either
sailed back to the area, Antiope now Queen, or she
may have stayed on with his ship after Hercules'
departure, interested in taking an Amazon home with
him as a trophy.
When he sailed home again, with Antiope/Hippolyte,
the Amazons persued him, and began a three month
sortie on Athens. Still another account says the
Amazon war raged four yeras before Hippolyte offered
peace to both sides. In that account, she is the
wife of Theseus, and mother of their son Hippolytus.
Yet another story says Hippolyte led the Amazon
march on Attica and the Peloponnese, where she was
conquered, then fled to Megara where she died of
grief and was buried in a massive stone tomb shaped
like an Amazon shield. Apparently, according to
many
writers, this tomb was shown for several hundred
years until for some reason it wasn't anymore.
But if Hippolyte really led the attack and later
died
in Megara, this would lend credence to the name
"Hippolyte" being a title rather than a name, since
Hippolyte was supposedly accidentally killed by her
sister Penthesileia during a hunting trip near
Themiskyra, at another time. Perhaps, like the clan
name Caesar, there was a woman with the name
Hippolyte, and later ascendants to her rule took her
name in her honor, as a title, as did all the rulers
of Rome, after C. Julius Caesar, take the name Caesar as theirs.
32. Hippothoe. No information.
The Amazons / Theseus and the Amazons
Links to Amazon Sites of Interest
