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[[File: Amazon 1.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Modern statue of an Amazon]]__NOTOC__The Greeks myths remain popular because of their remarkable stories of heroes, gods, and strange peoples. Some of the most remarkable of these are the tales of the Amazons. These were a race of female warriors who were often the enemies of the Hellenes.  The Greeks were clearly fascinated by the Amazons, as seen in the many references in poetry and the many representations of the female-warriors in art. It appears that, like many myths, the narratives about a race of martial women could have been based on fact. The Amazons' stories are important as they allow us to understand the Ancient Greek mindset and their values.

Many ancient writers state that the female society hated men. The Amazons were feared warriors, and it is claimed that they cut off or burnt off their right breast so that they could draw the string of a bow. These women-warriors were renowned archers , and they were often depicted riding horses. In Greek myths, Amazons came from the coast of the Black Sea coast in what is now modern Turkey.

However, as they began to colonize the area, different locations were proposed for their mythical homeland. One source states’ that they originated from Libya and another that they came the Steppes of what is now Ukraine and Russia. Academics have argued that the myth of the female warriors ' myth may have been based on a matriarchal society that flourished in the Black Sea area. Some believe that the Amazons were based on Scythian or Sarmatian female warriors, who were Iranian-speaking nomads. It is known that they were a war-like people and that they had female rulers.

For example, the Massagetae, who were related to the Scythians, were ruled by a warrior Queen, credited with slaying Cyrus the Great, the Persian Empire's founder. There have been numerous archaeological finds of women's burials from the age of 16-30 who bear injuries associated with blunt force trauma and weapons. These graves are believed to be female warriors who possibly died of war wounds. <ref>Fialko, Elena E. "Amazon's burials in the lands of steppe Scythia." Mousaios 14 (2009): 47-59.</ref> Many of the artistic depictions of Amazons have them attired like the Eurasian nomads.

In one account, he saw the dying Queen after she removed her helmet and he fell in love with her. This scene was depicted in many famous works of art in the Classical era. According to some accounts, a number of Amazon women escaped from Troy after the death of their Queen and settled in Scythia. This has been seen as the Greeks trying to rationalize and make sense of the custom of female nomadic warriors ' customs on the Eurasian Steppe.

Dionysus was the god of wine, religious ecstasy, fertility, and theatre. According to legend, he was driven mad by Hera. <ref> Bagnall, R. (ed). The Encyclopedia of Ancient History (London, Wiley-Blackwell, 2012), p. 34</ref> He traveled around Asia, making it as far as India, during which time he had many adventures. Eventually, he was cured of his madness , and he returned to Greece. He demanded to be recognized and worshipped as a God, but the Amazons refused. Dionysus chased the Amazons, far and wide. Eventually, he cornered them on the island of Samos, and with the assistance of the Samians, he massacred them. Bacchus thanked the Samians for their help by showing them how to grow grapes and make wine.<ref> Hope Moncrieff, A.R. Classical Mythology. Senate, London, 1994), p 134</ref>

Myths are not just entertaining stories but typically have some significance. The Amazonian myths were important in the Greek, world as they were used to define social norms and impart values. They helped pre-scientific society to understand their world and history. The Amazon myths are often thought to express the male Greek’s elite fear of the female. Classical society believed that women had to be controlled because they were irrational and dangerous to social stability. The stories of the Amazons was, used to demonstrate the dangers inherent in uncontrolled females. Stories of female warriors and their attacks on men were part of a discourse to justify their subjugation and the continuation of male hegemony. There is no one interpretation of a myth, and the fabled battles between the Greeks and the female warriors are often seen as representing the Hellenic conquest of nature and the victory of civilization.<ref> Hornblower, S. The Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2012), p. 67</ref>

Many Athenians saw the Amazons' defeat of the Amazons as the victory of the civilized and rational males over irrational women, which was vital for the development of society and culture. Moreover, the women were the archetypical barbarian, which was contrary to the Greek male citizen class. The cycle of stories was later adapted by the Athenians and other Greeks, later adapted the cycle of stories to represent the Persians.  In many works of art, the Persians are equated with the Amazons, who were defeated when they invaded Greece. The Persians of Xerxes and Darius were like the female warriors, irrational barbarians and their defeat also saved civilization.<ref>Hornblower, p 134</ref> Later the Romans used the stories of female warriors to determine what was socially acceptable. During the Augustus' reign of Augustus , images of women such as the Antiope were used to represent the Rome's enemies of Rome.