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Since the time of Homer, ancient stories told of fierce warriors dwelling beyond the Mediterranean world,
从荷马时代开始，就有一些古老的传说，叙述一群居住在地中海以外的彪悍勇士，他们所向无敌，
striking fear into the mightiest empires of antiquity.
足以令古代强大的帝国惶恐不安。
Their exploits were recounted by many epic poets.
他们的战绩已被诗人们重述万遍。
They fought in the legendary Trojan War and their grand army invaded Athens.
他们曾参与著名的特洛伊战争，他们庞大的军队也侵略过雅典。
Jason and the Argonauts passed by their shores, barely avoiding their deadly arrows.
伊阿宋和阿耳戈英雄们经过他们的海岸线，还差点被他们致命的箭击伤。
These formidable fighters faced off against the greatest champions of myth: Heracles, Theseus, and Achilles.
这群令人惊悚的战士曾跟神话里伟大的英雄对战：赫拉克勒斯、忒修斯以及阿喀琉斯。
And every single one of these warriors was a woman.
这群勇士每一位成员都是女的。
The war-loving Amazons, "the equals of men" in courage and skill, were familiar to everyone in ancient Greece.
好战的亚马逊人，无论在勇气或战术方面都不让须眉，他们的名气是古希腊众所周知的。
Amazon battle scenes decorated the Parthenon on the Athenian Acropolis;
亚马逊人的战斗场面装饰着帕特农神殿和雅典卫城；
paintings and statues of Amazons adorned temples and public spaces.
亚马逊人的画和雕像点缀着庙宇和公共场所。
Little girls played with Amazon dolls, and Amazons were a favorite subject on Greek vase paintings.
小女孩们玩着亚马逊玩偶，他们也是古希腊瓶画首选的主题。
In Greek art and literature, they were depicted as daring and desirable,
古希腊艺术和文学把亚马逊人描述成英勇强悍和富有魅力，
but also terrifying and deadly, and doomed to die at the hands of Greek heroes.
但与此同时凛然生畏和致命非凡，并且注定死于古希腊英雄的手中。
Were Amazons merely figures of myth, or something more?
亚马逊人只是神话中的人物，抑或真有其人呢？
It was long assumed that they were imaginary, like the cyclops and centaurs.
很长一段时间，人们都认为他们都是虚构的，跟单眼巨人和半人马无异。
But curiously enough, stories from ancient Egypt, Persia, the Middle East, Central Asia, India, and China also featured Amazon-like warrior women.
不过令人惊奇的是，来自古埃及、波斯、中东、中亚、印度和中国的典故中都有跟亚马逊人类似的女战士。
And Amazons were described in ancient historical accounts, not just myths.
此外，亚马逊人不只在神话中出现，也呈现于古代的历史记载中。
Writers like Herodotus, Plato, and Strabo never doubted their existence.
古代作者，如希罗多德、柏拉图和斯特拉波，都不曾怀疑过他们的存在。
So who were the real women warriors known as Amazons?
那么，称为亚马逊人的女勇士的真实身份是什么呢？
Ancient historians located the Amazon homeland in Scythia,
古代的历史学家都认为亚马逊人的故乡位于斯基提亚，
the vast territory stretching from the Black Sea across the steppes of Central Asia.
这块广袤的地区位于黑海和中亚草原之间。
This immense region was populated by nomadic tribes whose lives centered on horses, archery, and warfare.
游牧民族居住在这块宽广的土地上，他们的生活围绕马匹、箭术和战争为重心。
Their culture flourished for about 1,000 years beginning around 800 BC.
他们的文化始于公元前800年，并持续繁荣昌盛长达一千年。
Feared by Greeks, Persians, and the Chinese, the Scythians left no written records.
斯基提亚人令希腊人、波斯人和中国人闻风丧胆，但他们并没留下任何文字记录。
But we can find clues in how their neighbors described them, as well as in archaeology.
虽然如此，我们仍然可以通过邻国的记载和考古学来一窥他们。
Scythians' ancestors were the first to ride horses and they invented the recurve bow.
斯基提亚人的祖先是第一群懂得驾驭马群的人类，他们也发明了反曲弓。
And, because a female mounted archer could be as fast and as deadly as a male, all children were trained to ride and shoot.
因为女弓骑兵可以有男人一样的速度和杀伤力，所有孩童都接受骑马和射击训练。
Women hunted and fought alongside men, using the same weapons.
女人使用的兵器跟男的一样，并且和男人并肩作战。
The harsh landscape and their nomadic lifestyle created its own form of equality.
严酷的环境和他们的游牧生活习惯造就了这种独特的男女平等。
This amazed the ancient Greeks, whose women led restricted indoor lives.
这种社会现象令古希腊人十分惊奇，因为他们的女人都过着三步不出门的生活。
The earliest stories of the Scythians, and Amazons, may have been exaggerated rumors.
最早期跟斯基提亚人和亚马逊人的故事很大可能都是被夸大的传闻。
But as the Greeks began to trade around the Black Sea and further east, their portrayals became more realistic.
不过当古希腊人开始在黑海周围以及远东地区通商时，有关他们的描述更加真实了。
Early depictions of Amazons showed them with Greek weapons and armor.
早期有关亚马逊人的图画都显示他们使用古希腊人的武器和铠甲。
But in later representations, they wielded bows and battle-axes, rode horses,
但是后期的图画显示他们手持弓箭和战斧，骑着骏马，
and wore pointed caps and patterned trousers characteristic of steppe nomads.
以及头戴尖顶帽和身穿花纹裤子，也就是草原游牧民族的典型服装。
Until recently, no one was sure how strong the links were between Scythians and the Amazons of Greek myth.
在之前一段时间，没有人可以确定斯基提亚人跟古希腊神话里的亚马逊人有多大的关联。
But recent archaeological discoveries have provided ample evidence.
但是近期的考古发现已提供了足够的证据。
More than 1,000 ancient Scythian kurgans, or burial mounds, have been excavated, containing skeletons and weapons.
超过一千个古斯基提亚古冢已被挖掘出来，里面埋有骨骸和兵器。
Archaeologists had previously assumed that weapons could only belong to male warriors.
以前，考古学家认为那些兵器只属于男性战士。
But modern DNA analysis so far has revealed that
但是现代脱氧核糖核酸检验显示，
about 300 skeletons buried with weapons belong to females ranging in age from 10 to 45, and more are being found every year.
超过三百副跟兵器一起下葬的骨骸都属于女性，年龄介于10至45岁，并且每年有更多类似的骨骸被发现。
The women's skeletons show battle injuries: ribs slashed by swords, skulls bashed by battle-axes, and arrows embedded in bones.
这些女性骨骸带着战伤：有的肋骨被剑砍伤，有的头颅骨被战斧击碎，也有的骨头中还嵌着箭。
In classical art and writings, the fearsome Amazons were always portrayed as brave and heroic.
在古典艺术和文学中，令人畏惧的亚马逊人通常都被描绘成英勇的战士。
In male-dominated classical Greece, however, the very idea of strong women who gloried in freedom and war aroused mixed feelings.
不过，在男权至上的古希腊社会里，想象在自由和战争中闪耀的强大女性会引发矛盾的情绪。
And yet, the Greeks were also drawn to egalitarian ideals.
虽然如此，希腊人仍然深爱平均主义的理想。
Is it possible that the mythic realm of thrilling Amazon tales was a way to imagine women and men as equal companions?
有没有可能，扣人心弦的亚马逊人的神话，其实是想象着男女平等相处的一种方式？
