Otto Van Veen, Amazons and Scythians, 1597-99

The Amazons were a nation of warrior women from what is modern-day Turkey. They were the daughters of Harmonia (goddess of harmony) and Ares (god of war). Herodotus writes that they were captured by the Greeks and taken as POWs on ships bound for Greece, but the women managed to overcome their captors and kill them all off. Since the Amazons had no knowledge of seafaring or how to navigate a ship, they floated along until they landed in the land of the Scythians. The Amazons met first with an army troop, but being unable to speak the same language they fought in battle instead. The Scythians thought that the Amazons were men, but after seeing the bodies of the fallen Amazons they learned that they were women and desired to have them as mates. The Scythians camped out near the Amazons, slowly bringing their camps closer every day until finally one Scythian and one Amazon got close to one another and got it on. The others were soon to follow. Van Veen let his imagination run wild here and depicted the beginnings of a raging orgy.

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