Women warriors from Greek mythology may have actually existed. To support this, researchers are continually uncovering new artifacts related to the Amazons. Renowned British historian Bettany Hughes recently discussed Bronze Age graves containing the remains of Amazons discovered near the Azerbaijani city of Nakhchivan.
During the excavations, archaeologists found, among other things, the remains of female archers with battle scars, Hughes noted.
According to ancient Greek myths, the Amazons were fierce warrior women who lived on the edge of the world. Hercules received the magical belt of the Amazon queen Hippolyta as part of one of his twelve labors. Meanwhile, Achilles killed another Amazon queen, Penthesilea, and fell in love with her when he saw her beautiful face beneath her helmet.
These nomadic women rode horses and were skilled archers. They fought and hunted as well as men. Throughout their long history, their images have been shrouded in myth, The Guardian reported. However, archaeologists are finding more and more evidence that these brave women truly existed.
What Researchers Discovered
The excavations of the necropolis in Azerbaijan revealed that women were buried with weapons, including razor-sharp arrowheads, a bronze dagger, and a mace. They also found jewelry, including a carnelian necklace. “Carnelian is a semi-precious stone. It was owned by high priestesses or goddesses. So, this indicates a woman of status, just like the mace,” the historian pointed out.
Archaeologists concluded that these could be Amazon women who lived 4,000 years ago. These formidable ladies took pride in their community, free from men, and were renowned for their skills on the battlefield, particularly their mastery of bows and arrows.
As Bettany Hughes noted, this evidence becomes even more significant when linked to earlier findings. In 2019, scientists discovered the remains of four female warriors buried with arrowheads and spear tips. In 2017, Armenian archaeologists unearthed the remains of a woman who died from battle wounds: an arrowhead was embedded in her leg. Even earlier, in the early 1990s, researchers found the remains of a woman buried with a dagger near the border with Kazakhstan.
“Civilization is not made up of a single grave when we talk about a culture that crosses the Caucasus and the Steppe, as evidenced by ancient remains,” the scholar said.
Some skeletons reveal what these women did in life. As Bettany Hughes stated, “Their fingers are deformed because they often used arrows.” According to her, the pelvic bones indicate that these women spent a lot of time in the saddle: “These bones are shaped by a certain way of life.”
Memories of the Amazons of the Caucasus Are Still Fresh
The findings will be featured in a new series, “Hughes’ World Treasures,” set to air on Channel 4 in April. One episode, “The Silk Road and the Caucasus,” is dedicated to that part of the world, which has witnessed the ebb and flow of various cultures and civilizations over the centuries.
In the film, the historian will recount her journey to the mountain village of Khinalug in the Greater Caucasus, the highest settlement in Europe. It is home to 2,000 people and is so remote that it “seems to have gotten lost in time,” Hughes noted. She added that the local language spoken in this village is no longer found anywhere else in the world.
This settlement has existed since the Bronze Age. Locals noted that in ancient times, women here disguised themselves with scarves to pass as men. Such stories have been passed down in this region from generation to generation.
Moreover, the villagers had an interesting reaction to Bettany Hughes’ account of the Amazons. They said that all their grandmothers fought when “all the men went with the herds.” Women always covered their faces when they fought so that people wouldn’t know their gender.