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Did the Amazons really exist? - Adrienne Mayor

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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.

Until recent advances in bioarchaeology and DNA testing of human remains in ancient Scythian kurgans, archaeologists took for granted that all graves containing weapons must have belonged to male warriors. Now, archaeologists are finding that about 1/3 of armed skeletons are female. So far, about 300 warrior women's burials have been identified and more are coming to light each year. Why do you suppose archaeologists assumed that grave goods told the sex of the skeleton?

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Meet The Creators

  • Educator Adrienne Mayor
  • Script Editor Alex Gendler
  • Director Silvia Prietov
  • Producer Edi Jimenez
  • Animator William Cifuentes, Jorge Moyano, Diego Doncel
  • Art Director William Pineda
  • Compositor Jeffersson Vargas
  • Composer Cem Misirlioglu, Brooks Ball
  • Sound Designer Cem Misirlioglu
  • Associate Producer Elizabeth Cox, Jessica Ruby
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Narrator Susan Zimmerman

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