32. The Amazons

According to myth, the Amazons were a nation of female warriors who lived on the edges of the Greek world, often near the Thermodon River or in Scythia. They were ruled by queens such as Hippolyta, Antiope, and Penthesilea, and were famous for living apart from men, riding horses, using bows and spears, and fighting with extraordinary skill. Greek heroes repeatedly encountered them: Heracles was sent to fetch the belt of Hippolyta, Theseus carried off Antiope, and Penthesilea fought in the Trojan War on the Trojan side after Hector’s death.

For ancient descriptions of the Amazons, see Homer, Iliad 3.184–9; Herodotus, Histories 4.110–117; Diodorus Siculus 2.45–6; 3.53–5.

For ancient depictions of this myth, see Fragment of an Attic Red-Figure Rhyton ca. 460–450 BCE.

1

οἱ † πατηριᾶται παραξίθοοι: the text is corrupt here, since “the Pateriates along the Xithos” does not refer to any known location. Some scholars emend the text to mean, “the people of Patara (Παταρεῖς) who live on the Xanthus River (παραξάνθιοι)."

πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων: = ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων; occasionally prepositions other than ὑπό are used in passive verb constructions.

2

τὸ γένος: accusative of respect, “as a people.”

μάχεσθαι ἀγαθοὶ: “good at fighting” (LSJ ἀγαθός I.3).

εἰκὸς: supply ἐστι, “it seems likely that” + infinitive.