The idea of the Amazons is one of the most romantic and resonant in all antiquity. Greeks were fascinated by images and tales of these fierce female fighters. At Troy, Achilles' duel with Penthesilea was a clash of superman and superwoman. Achilles won the fight, but the queen's dying beauty had torn into his soul. This vibrant new book offers the first complete picture of the reality behind the legends. It shows there was much more to the Amazons than a race of implacable warrior women. David Braund casts the Amazons in a new light: as figures of potent agency, founders of cities, guileful and clever as well as physically impressive and sexually alluring to men. Black Sea mythologies become key to unlocking the Amazons' mystery. Investigating legend through history, literature, and archaeology, the author uncovers a truth as surprising and evocative as any fiction told through story or myth.

‘David Braund, in his rich and robust treatment of the topic, is throughout aware of the deficiencies of the extant ancient written sources and doesn't make the mistake of telling us what they would or should have said. He retells versions of ancient myths extremely well. He is particularly strong on the gender and sexuality dimensions of his subject. And he correctly sees and shows that the Amazons were fundamental to the Athenians' identity. This is a powerful and important study of an eternally fascinating and culturally significant subject.'

Paula Cartledge - Emeritus A. G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture, University of Cambridge, author of The Spartans: An Epic History and of Thermopylae: The Battle that Changed the World

‘This engaging overview of the Greek Amazon myth from renowned scholar of ancient Black Sea cultures David Braund is an important corrective to ‘truth behind the myth' rhetoric which equates ancient Amazons with historical Scythian women. Braund treats the Amazon myth as a Greek male cultural product, but also brings out its potential to show complex appreciation of the way women's capacities can go beyond expected norms of femininity. Scrupulous attention to context and detail in ancient textual and material evidence enables an approach which both acknowledges the power of the myth's attractiveness and does not minimise feminine potential. The Amazons have long fascinated those who study Greek myth and culture: this richly accessible overview will set the baseline for future scholarship and be very useful for student readers.'

Helen Lovatt - Professor of Classics, University of Nottingham, author of In Search of the Argonauts: The Remarkable History of Jason and the Golden Fleece