Hercules performed the next feat at the whim of Eurystheus' daughter Admeta. She wanted to get Hippolyta's belt,queen of the amazons,which the god of war Ares gave her. The ruler wore this belt as a sign of her power over all the Amazons - a warlike tribe of women who never knew defeat. On the same day, Hercules appeared before Eurystheus.

Bring me the belt of Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons! - ordered the king. - And don't come back without him! So Hercules set off on another dangerous journey. In vain did the friends persuade the hero not to risk his life, assuring him that it was safer to enter a cage with hungry tigers than to meet the Amazons. But the stories of experienced people never frightened Hercules. In addition, knowing that he would have to deal with women, he did not believe that they could be as ferocious as the Nemean lion or the Lernaean hydra.

And so the ship arrived on the island. Imagine the surprise of Hercules' companions when they saw that the Amazons were not going to attack them at all. Moreover, the savages greeted the sailors in a friendly manner, gazing with admiration at the powerful figure of the renowned hero. Soon a horse stomp was heard, and a half-naked rider with a golden tiara on her head and a belt snaking around her waist appeared before the crowd. It was Queen Hippolyta herself. She was the first to welcome the guest.

The rumor about your deeds, Hercules, runs ahead of you, - said the warrior. - Where are you going now? Whom haven't you conquered yet?

I came not to conquer you, but to ask for what you possess - the famous belt of Hippolyta. This was the desire of King Eurystheus, and I must fulfill it in order to atone for my guilt before the gods.

Well, - answered Ippolita, - it is our custom to give a guest everything that he likes! You can consider this belt as yours.

Hercules had already stretched out his hand to take the gift, when suddenly one of the women (and this was the goddess Hera herself, who took the form of an Amazon) cried out:

Don't trust him, Hippolyta! He wants to capture together
with a belt and you, take away to a foreign land and make a slave.

Believing their friend, the Amazons immediately pulled out their bows and arrows. Reluctantly, Hercules took hold of his club and began to strike the warlike maidens. Hippolyta was one of the first to fall. Bending down, Hercules removed the belt from the maiden's bloody body.

Damn you, Eurystheus! - whispered the hero. “You made me fight women!

And without wasting time, he hurried to the shores of Argolis to give the king the unfortunate belt Hippolyta.

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Date of creation: -.

Genre: myth.

Theme: -.

Idea: -.

Problems. -.

Main characters: Hercules, Hippolyta.

Plot. Eurystheus came up with a new task for the son of Zeus. Far to the east, there was a tribe of Amazons ruled by Queen Hippolyta. Her belt was a gift from the god Ares and symbolized the supreme military power. Eurystheus' daughter Admet wanted to get him. She asked her father to get her this symbol of military power. The king decided to send Hercules on a difficult campaign.

The son of Zeus understood that the trip would not be easy and would take a long time. Therefore, he recruited a whole detachment of famous warriors, among whom was Theseus.

The kingdom of the Amazons was located on the very outskirts of Greek civilization. It was necessary to cross the Black Sea and reach its farthest shores. Crossing the Aegean Sea, the detachment landed on the island of Paros, which was ruled by the sons of Minos. They suddenly attacked the detachment and killed two of its members. The enraged Hercules destroyed many of the inhabitants of the island and took the capital under siege. The sons of Minos realized that they had made a big mistake. Defeat was inevitable. Ambassadors were sent to the son of Zeus, who began to beg him to lift the siege and take with him any two residents in exchange for those killed. Hercules took Alkeus and Sfenelus.

On the way, the detachment helped the Mizian king Likus in the fight against the bebriks. Hercules defeated the army of the Bebriks and killed their king. The hero gave all the lands of the Bebriks to Lika, who in gratitude called these territories Heraclea.

The Amazons have already heard about the glory of Hercules. The women gazed with admiration at the mighty figure of the hero. Hippolyta asked why the son of Zeus had arrived in their capital, Themiscira. Hercules answered frankly that he had come to the country of the Amazons with an armed detachment at the whim of the daughter of King Eurystheus. Hippolyta was moved by the peaceful words of Hercules and wanted to give the belt, but Hera intervened. Having turned into an Amazon, the goddess slandered the hero. According to her, the goal of Hercules was to kidnap Hippolyta, so you need to attack his small detachment.

The simple-minded Amazons believed the slander. A bloody battle began. Distinguished Amazon Protoya, who killed seven members of the squad. The prototype was only able to kill Hercules himself. The Amazon army was defeated, and they hastened to make peace. Hercules took the belt and delivered it to Eurystheus.

Review of the work. The ninth feat was a real adventure for Hercules. To carry out the order, he made a long campaign at the head of the detachment to an unknown country. The son of Zeus was not bloodthirsty. He wanted to get the belt peacefully. Only Hera's intervention led to unnecessary bloodshed and mutual sacrifices.

The ninth feat of Hercules was his campaign to the country of the Amazons behind the belt of Queen Hippolyta. This belt was presented to Hippolyta by the god of war, Ares, and she wore it as a sign of her power over all the Amazons. The daughter of Eurystheus Admet, a priestess of the goddess Hera, certainly wanted to have this belt. To fulfill her desire, Eurystheus sent Hercules for the belt. Gathering a small detachment of heroes, the great son of Zeus set off on a long journey on only one ship. Although the detachment of Hercules was small, there were many glorious heroes in this detachment, I was the great hero of Attica Theseus in it.

A long way lay ahead of the heroes. They had to reach the farthest shores of the Euxine Pontus, since there was the country of the Amazons with the capital Themiscyra. On the way, Hercules landed with his companions on the island of Paros, where the sons of Minos ruled. On this island, the sons of Minos killed two companions of Hercules. Hercules, angry at this, immediately began a war with the sons of Minos. He killed many of the inhabitants of Paros, while driving others into the city, he kept them under siege until the besieged ambassadors were sent to Hercules and asked him to take two of them instead of the killed companions. Then Hercules lifted the siege and took the grandsons of Minos, Alkeus and Sfenelus instead of those killed.

From Paros, Hercules arrived in Mizia to the king Likus, who received him with great hospitality. Unexpectedly, the king of the bebriks attacked Lika. Hercules defeated the king of bebriks with his detachment and destroyed his capital, and gave all the land of bebriks to Lika. King Lik named this country in honor of Hercules Heraclea. After this feat, Hercules went further, and finally arrived at the city of the Amazons, Themiscira. The fame of the exploits of the son of Zeus has long reached the country of the Amazons. Therefore, when the ship of Hercules docked at Themiscira, the Amazons with the queen came out to meet the hero. They looked in amazement at the great son of Zeus, who stood out, like an immortal god, among his companions-heroes. Queen Hippolyta asked the great hero Hercules:

Glorious son of Zeus, tell me what brought you to our city? Are you bringing us peace or war?

This is how Hercules answered the queen:

Queen, I did not come here of my own free will with an army, having made a long journey along the stormy sea; I was sent by the ruler of Mycenae Eurystheus. His daughter Admet wants to have your belt, a gift from the god Ares. Eurystheus has instructed me to get your belt. Hippolyta was unable to deny anything to Hercules. She was already ready to voluntarily give him the belt, but the great Hera, wanting to destroy the hated Hercules, took the form of an Amazon, intervened in the crowd and began to convince the warriors to attack the army of Hercules.

Hercules is not telling the truth, - Hera said to the Amazons, - he came to you with an insidious intent: the hero wants to kidnap your queen Hippolyta and take her as a slave to his house.

The Amazons believed Hera. They grabbed their arms and attacked the army of Hercules. Ahead of the Amazon army was Aella, swift as the wind. She was the first to attack Hercules, like a stormy whirlwind. The great hero repelled her onslaught and put her to flight, Aella thought to escape from the hero by a quick flight. All her speed did not help her, Hercules overtook her and struck her with his sparkling sword. Fell in battle and Protoe. She defeated seven heroes from among the companions of Hercules with her own hand, but she did not escape the arrow of the great son of Zeus. Then seven Amazons attacked Hercules at once; they were companions of Artemis herself: no one was equal to them in the art of wielding a spear. Covering themselves with shields, they launched their spears at Hercules. but the spears flew past this time. All of them were slain by the hero with his club; one after another they struck the ground, flashing their weapons. The Amazonian Melanippe, who was leading the army into battle, was captured by Hercules, and Antiope was also captured with her. The formidable warriors were defeated, their army fled, many of them fell at the hands of the heroes who were pursuing them. The Amazon made peace with Hercules. Hippolyta bought the freedom of the mighty Melanippe at the cost of her belt. The heroes took Antiope with them. Hercules gave her as a reward to Theseus for his great bravery. So Hercules got Hippolyta's belt.

To accomplish the ninth feat, Hercules had to obtain for the daughter of Eurystheus Admeta the golden belt of the god of war Ares, which was worn by the queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta. Having embarked on a ship (and others say nine ships) and taking with him volunteers, among whom were Iolaus, Telamon from Aegina, Peleus from Iolcus and, according to some testimonies, Theseus from Athens, Hercules sailed along the river Fermodon 1.

b. The Amazons were the children of Ares and the naiad of Harmonia, who gave birth to them in the valleys of Phrygian Acmonia. True, some consider them to be the mother of Aphrodite or the daughter of Ares Otrera 2. At first, they lived along the banks of the Amazon River, now called after Tanais, the son of the Amazon Lysippa, who offended Aphrodite with neglect of marriage and commitment to war. In revenge, Aphrodite made Tanais fall in love with his own mother. But, not succumbing to incestuous passion, he threw himself into the river and drowned. To get rid of the reproaches of his spirit, Lysippa led her daughters along the coast of Pontus Euxine to the valley of the Fermodont River, which flows high in the Amazon Mountains. Here they were divided into three tribes, each of which founded its own city 3.

c. Then, as now, the Amazons were descended from the maternal line, and Lysippus established that men should do all the household chores, and women should fight and rule. Therefore, in infancy, boys were broken arms and legs in order to deprive them of the opportunity to fight and travel. These unusual women, whom the Scythians called "eorpata" ("male killers"), did not recognize justice or shame, but were known as warriors who first used cavalry 4. They had copper bows and small crescent-shaped shields. They made helmets, cloaks and belts from the skins of wild animals 5. Lysippa, before she fell in battle, built the huge city of Themiscira and defeated all the tribes up to Tanais itself. On the spoils from her campaigns, she built temples to Ares and Artemis Tavropol, whose cult she established. Her descendants expanded the possessions of the Amazon Empire westward across the Tanais River to Thrace, and along the southern bank - westward beyond Fermodont, to Phrygia. Three famous Amazonian queens - Marpessa, Lampado and Hippo - seized large possessions in Asia Minor and Syria and founded the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Kimu and Mirina. In addition, they founded the cities of Phoebe and Sinop 6.

d. In Ephesus, they installed a statue of Artemis under a beech tree, where Hippo performed sacrifices, after which her fellow tribesmen first performed a dance with shields, and then danced in a round dance, simultaneously hitting the ground with their feet to the accompaniment of pipes, because Athena had not yet invented the flute. Above this statue, the temple of Artemis of Ephesus was later erected, which surpasses even the Delphic temple of Apollo in its splendor and is one of the seven wonders of the world. The temple is surrounded by two streams flowing in the opposite direction with the same name Selene. It was during this campaign that the Amazons captured Troy. Priam was still a child at the time. However, when the detachments of the Amazonian army began to withdraw with great prey, those who remained in Asia Minor in order to strengthen their power were expelled by the alliance of barbarian tribes, and in one of the battles the Amazons lost Queen Marpessa 7.

e. By the time Hercules went to the Amazons, they had already returned to the River Fermodont, and their three cities were ruled by Hippolyta, Antiope and Melanippe. On the way, Hercules visited the island of Paros, famous for its marble, which King Radamant bequeathed to a certain Alcaeus, the son of Androgeus, but the four sons of Minos - Eurymedon, Chris, Nephalion and Philolaus - also settled on the island. When two companions of Hercules, having landed on the shore to take water, were killed by the sons of Minos, he, indignant, killed all four sons and began to press the Parians so much that they thought it best to send ambassadors and offer two local men in exchange for the killed sailors. choice as slaves. Satisfied with such a proposal, Hercules lifted the siege and chose the king Alcaeus and his brother Sfenel, taking them with him on the ship. Then he sailed through the Hellespont and the Bosphorus to the Mysian Mariandin, where he was received by the king of the Paphlagonians Lik, the son of Daskil and the grandson of Tantalus 8. In response, Hercules supported Likus in his war with the Bebriks, killing many, including King Migdon, who was Amica's brother, and returning the vast lands to the Paphlagonians that the Bebriks had previously seized from them. He transferred these lands into the possession of Lika, and he, in gratitude, named them Heraclea. Later, Megarians and the inhabitants of Tanagra established their colonies in Heraclea. This was done on the advice of the Pythia at Delphi, who said that they should establish a colony at Pontus Euxinus on land dedicated to Hercules 9.

f... Arriving at the mouth of the Fermodont River, Hercules anchored in the bay of Themiscira, where Hippolyta paid him a visit and, captivated by his muscular body, offered him Ares' belt as a token of her love. However, Hera was already right there and, dressed as an Amazon, began to spread the rumor that the strangers wanted to kidnap Hippolyta. Hearing such words, the excited warriors got on their horses and hurried to the ship. Hercules, suspecting betrayal, immediately killed Hippolyta, took off her belt, grabbed her ax and other armor and prepared to stand up for himself. He in turn killed all the leaders of the Amazons and, after a great battle, put their army to flight 10.

g. Some, however, argue that Melanippe was ambushed and was ransomed by Hippolyta for a belt, or vice versa: Melanippe ransomed Hippolyta. They also say that Theseus captured Hippolyta and presented her belt to Hercules, who in return allowed him to take Antiope into slavery, or that Hippolyta refused to give Hercules the belt and they fought on a specially prepared place for this. He knocked her out of the saddle and stood over her with a raised club, offering mercy, but she chose not to yield and die. It is even said that the belt belonged to one of the daughters of Briareus Storhand 11.

h... Upon his return from Themiscira, Hercules again came to Mariandin and took part in the funeral games in honor of the brother of King Likus, named Priol, who was killed by the Mysians, to whom funeral songs are still sung. Hercules met in a fist fight with the best fighter of the Mariandines Titius, knocked out all his teeth and killed him with a blow to the temple. In confirmation of his regret for what happened, Hercules subdued the Mysians and Phrygians, fighting on the side of Daskil. He also conquered the Bithynians, who lived up to the mouth of the Rebei River and the top of Mount Colon, and claimed their kingdom for himself. The Paphlagonians of Pelope voluntarily obeyed him. However, as soon as Hercules left this country, the Bebriks, under the leadership of Poseidon's son Amicus, again took the land from Lik and expanded their borders to the Hypius River 12.

i... Sailing to Troy, Hercules saved Hesiona from the sea monster and continued on his way to the Thracian En, where he was received by Poltis. When he was about to go out to sea again, on the shore he struck with an arrow the insolent brother of Poltis named Sarpedon, the son of Poseidon. Then he conquered the Thracians who settled on Thasos, and the island itself bequeathed to the sons of Androgeus, which he had taken from Paros. In Thoron he was summoned to fight by the sons of Proteus named Polygon and Telegon, and in the battle he killed them 13.

j... Finally returning to Mycenae, Hercules gave the belt to Eurystheus, who presented it to Admet. With the rest of the spoils taken from the Amazons, he did the following: he presented rich cloaks to the temple of Apollo in Delphi, gave Hippolyta's ax to Queen Omphale, who made him one of the sacred regalia of the Lydian kings. In the end, the ax ended up in the Karyan temple of Zeus of Labranda and was put into the hands of the statue that stood there 14.

k... Amazons can still be found in Albania, near Colchis, where they were driven from Themiscira at the same time as their neighbors the Gargarians. Feeling safe in the Albanian mountains, both peoples were divided: the Amazons settled at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains along the Mermod River, and the Gargarians settled a little further north. On a designated day in the spring, groups of young Amazons and Gargarians meet on the top of the mountain that separates their lands, and, after making a joint sacrifice, spend two months together, enjoying love under the cover of darkness. As soon as the Amazons find they are pregnant, they immediately go home. All girls who are born become Amazons, and the boys are sent to the Gargarians and there they are distributed by lot among the huts, since it is not known who is whose father. In recent times, the queen of the Amazons, Minithia, traveled from her Albanian palace to meet Alexander the Great in tiger-ridden Hyrcania. There she spent thirteen days in his company, hoping to give birth to a child from him, but soon after her return she died childless.

l... These Pontic Amazons must be distinguished from the Libyan allies of Dionysus, who once inhabited Hesperus, an island on Lake Triton so rich in fruit trees, sheep and goats that the Amazons did not even need to grow grain. After capturing all the cities on the island, with the exception of the sacred Mena, where the Ethiopian fish eaters (who mined emeralds, rubies, topaz and carnelian) lived, they defeated the neighboring Libyans and nomads and founded the great city of Chersonesos, so named because it was built on the peninsula 17 ... From here they attacked the inhabitants of Atlantis - the most cultured people west of the Nile, which had its capital on the Atlantic island of Kerna. The queen of the Amazons, Mirina, gathered thirty thousand horsemen and three thousand infantry. All of them were armed with bows, from which, during the retreat, they hit exactly their pursuers. Their armor was the skins of the incredibly large Libyan snakes.

m... Having invaded the land of the Atlanteans, Mirina inflicted a crushing defeat on them and, having crossed over to the island of Kernu, captured the city. She gave all men to the sword; women and children were captured as slaves and the city walls were razed to the ground. When the surviving inhabitants of Atlantis agreed to surrender, she treated them very well, made friends with them and, in return for the island of Kerna, seized from them, built a new city of Mirina, where she settled all the captives and those who agreed to live in this city. Since the Atlanteans offered to give her divine honors henceforth, Mirina protected them from the neighboring tribe of Gorgons, many of whom she killed and took at least three thousand prisoners 18. However, on the night when the Amazons celebrated the victory, the captives stole the swords taken from them and, at a signal, the main forces of the gorgons, gathered and hiding in the oak forest, rushed from all sides to beat Mirina's tribesmen.

n. The tribesmen of Mirina were buried under three huge mounds, which are still called "the mounds of the Amazons", but she herself managed to escape, and she, having passed most of Libya, with a new army invaded Egypt, helped King Horus, the son of Isis, and began to conquer Arabia. Some argue that it was the Libyan Amazons, and not those who lived near Pontus Euxinus, who managed to conquer Asia Minor and that Mirina, in the most convenient places in her new empire, founded a large number of coastal cities, including Mirina, Kima, Pitana, Priene, as well as other cities far from the sea. In addition, she conquered several islands in the Aegean Sea, in particular Lesvos, where she built the city of Mytilene, named after her sister, who participated in this campaign. While Mirina was conquering the islands, her fleet fell into a storm, but the Mother of the Gods safely carried all the ships to the island of Samothrace, which at that time was uninhabited. Therefore, Mirina dedicated this land to the Mother of the Gods, set up numerous altars to her and made abundant sacrifices.

O. After that, Myrina crossed over to mainland Thrace, where the Pug king and his ally, the Scythian king Sinil, defeated her in a fair fight, and she herself was killed. The army of the Amazons never recovered from this defeat, and, yielding to the Thracians in minor skirmishes, the surviving Amazons finally left for Libya 19.

1 Apollodorus ІІ.5.9; Pindar. Nemean Odes III.35 and Fragment 172; Philochorus. Cit. by: Plutarch. Theseus 26.

2 Apollonius of Rhodes II.990-992 and scholias; Cicero. In Defense of Flaccus 15; Gigin. Myths 30.

3 Servius. Commentary on the Aeneid by Virgil XI.659; Apollonius of Rhodes II.970 ff.

4 Diodorus Siculus II.45.1; Herodotus IV.110; Apollonius of Rhodes II.987-989.

5 Pindar. Cit. op. III.38; Strabo XI.5.1.

6 Diodorus Sicilian II.45-46; Strabo XI.5.4.

7 Callimachus. Anthem to Artemis 237 ff .; Gigin. Cit. op. 223 & 225; Pliny. Natural History V.31; Homer. Iliad ІІІ.183 ff.

8 Diodorus Sicilian V.79; Herodotus VII.72; Scholia to Apollonius of Rhodes II. 752.

9 Strabo XII.3.4; Apollodorus ІІ.5.9; Pausanias V.26.6.

10 Diodorus Siculus IV.16; Apollodorus. Cit. cit .; Plutarch. Greek questions 45.

11 Apollonius of Rhodes II.966 ff .; Diodorus of Siculus. Cit. op.

12 Apollonius of Rhodes II. 776 ff.

13 Apollodorus II.5.9.

14 Apollodorus. Cit. cit .; Euripides. Hercules 414 et seq. and Jonah 1140 et seq .; Plutarch. Greek questions 45.

15 Strabo XI.5.1-2 and 4; Servius. Commentary on Virgil's Aeneid XI.659.

16 Strabo XI.5.4.

17 Diodorus of Siculus III.52-53.

18 Ibid. III.54.

19 Ibid. III.55.

1. If Admet was the name of the princess, for whose sake Hercules had to go through marital trials, then removing the belt from her in the bridal chamber should have meant the end of his exploits. But before that, Admeta had to enter into a duel the way Hippolyta did or how Penthesilea fought Achilles (see 164. a and 2), and Thetis with Lelei (see 81. k). This would explain Hippolyta's appearance in the story. In this case, she had to undergo all the usual transformations, indicating that the cuttlefish-like hydra was Admeta, i.e. a serpent guarding gold, whom Hercules defeated in the form of Ladon (see 133. a). In addition, it could turn into cancer (see 124. e), fallow deer (see 125. c), a wild mare (see 16. f) and the cloud (see 126. b) before Hercules gets her hand.

2. The tradition according to which the priestesses were armed still existed in Ephesus and other cities of Asia Minor, but the Greek mythographers, forgetting that a similar practice existed in Athens and other cities of Greece proper, send Hercules in search of the belt of Hippolyta to Pontus Euxinian, where there were still tribes with a matriarchal organization (see 100.1). Matriarchy, as a rule, assumed a three-tribal organization. The fact that the belt belonged to the daughter of Briareus ("strong"), i.e. one of the Storukhs, indicates that the scene of this story of the marriage trials was northern Greece.

3. Admeta - one of the names of Athena, who was portrayed, probably fully armed and watching the exploits of Hercules, to help him if necessary. Athena was Neith, the Libyan goddess of love and battle (see 8.1); in Asia Minor, it was associated with the great moon-goddess Marian, Mirina, Ay-Mari, Mariamna or Marienna, who gave the name to Mariandine ("the dunes of Mariana") and Mirina, the city where lesbians ruled by women lived (see 149.1). The Trojans worshiped her under the name of "swift Mirina" "(Homer. Iliad II.814)." Smyrna "is also" Mirina ", only in this case a definite article is placed before the name. The Sumerian form of Marienna means" high fertile mother. " The Ephesian goddess of fertility was Artemis.

4. It is said that Myrina was caught in a storm and was saved by the Mother of the Gods, in whose honor she erected altars in Samothrace. However, in fact, she herself was the mother of the gods, and the rituals dedicated to her were supposed to save sailors from shipwreck (see 149.2). A very similar Mother Goddess was worshiped in ancient times in Thrace, in the region of the Tanais (Don) River, in Armenia, as well as throughout Asia Minor and Syria. Theseus' trek to the Amazon is a myth based on the myth of Hercules, which further confused the issue and allowed the mythographers to concoct an alleged invasion of Athens by both the Amazons and the Scythians (see 100. c).

5. The message that the Amazons erected a statue under the Ephesian beech is a mistake of Callimachus, who, being from Egypt, could not have known that beeches did not grow so far to the south; most likely, it was a date palm, symbolizing fertility (see 14.2) and reminiscent of the Libyan origin of the goddess, whose statues were hung with large golden dates, usually mistaken for breasts. The defeat inflicted by the Pug on the Amazons indicates that around the 12th century. BC. the Hittites were defeated by the Moschs. Initially, the Hittites were a patriarchal people, but under the influence of matriarchal societies in Asia Minor and Babylonia, they began to worship a female deity. In their capital, Hattushash, Garstang discovered a sculptural relief depicting a warrior goddess. He believes that the cult of Artemis of Ephesus is of Hittite origin. The victories over the Amazons won by Hercules, Theseus, Dionysus, Pug and others, in fact, testify to the ousting of the matriarchal system from Greece, Asia Minor, Thrace and Syria.

6. Stephen of Byzantine (under the word Paros) mentions a legend according to which Paros was considered a Cretan colony. The appearance of Hercules on the island speaks of the capture of the island by the Hellenes. The fact that he bequeathed Thasos to the sons of Androgeus indicates the capture of this island by a detachment of the Parians, as mentioned in the "History" of Thucydides (IV.104). Moreover, this event took place at the end of the VIII century. BC. Around the same time, the Euboeans established a colony on Thoron. They considered Torona the daughter of Proteus (Stephen of Byzantine under the word Torone). Hippolyta's double ax was never put into the hand of Zeus of Labranda instead of a perun. The ax itself symbolized the Perun, and Zeus wore it with the permission of the Cretan goddess who ruled in Lydia.

7. The Gargareans are the Gogarens whom Ezekiel calls Gog (Ezekiel 38 and 39).

8. Reporting on Mirin, Diodorus of Siculus retells the ancient Libyan legends, in which the fabulous element is already visible. It is established that in the third millennium BC. Neolithic tribes left Libya in different directions, possibly due to the fact that their fields were flooded with water (see 39.3-6). Many Libyans have appeared in the Nile Delta.

9. According to Apollonius of Rhodes (I.1126-9), Titius was one of only three ideological dactyls ("fingers") who decided fate. He mentions another dactyl, Killenya. I have already shown ("The White Goddess" 281) that in the magic of the fingers, dactyl Titius corresponded to the middle finger, and Killeneus, or, in other words, Hercules, was the thumb; the third dactyl, named Daskil, was the index finger, as is indicated by his name (see 53.1). These three fingers extended upwards with the ring and little fingers curled up constituted a "Phrygian blessing." Such a blessing, which first arose as a symbol of Mirina, then passed on to the Catholic priests to designate the Christian Trinity.

10. Titius killed by Apollo (see 21. d), could be a doublet of the name Titius. The capture of the island by Kerne Mirina is probably a later, alien addition to the plot. Kerna is identified with Fedallah near Fez, or with Santa Cruz at Cape Gir, or, more likely, with Argin, located just south of Cabo Blanco. It was discovered and colonized by the Carthaginian Hannon, who reported that this island was located at the same distance from the Pillars of Hercules as the Pillars were from Carthage itself.

11. This is what can be said about the mythical elements contained in the story of the ninth feat. However, Hercules' campaign against Thermodont and his wars in Mysia and Phrygia cannot be dismissed as having no historical basis. Like the voyage of the "Argo" (see 148.10), they testify to Greek trade relations in the Pontus Euxine region as early as the middle of the second millennium BC, and the appearance of the Minians from Iolcus, the Aecids from Aegina and the Argives in these waters suggests that that, although Elena could be beautiful and escape with the Trojan Paris, a thousand ships set sail not because of her beauty, but for purely commercial reasons. The son of Peleus Achilles, the son of Telamon Ajax and the Argive Diomedes were among the allies of Agamemnon, who insisted that Priam would allow them to sail freely across the Hellespont, as their fathers had done. Otherwise, they wanted to plunder the city, as happened with Laomedont, who fell for the same reason (see 137.1). That is why the Athenians' doubtful assertions arose that Theseus represented them on the campaign of Hercules, Phaler was such a representative on the "Argo" voyage, and Menespheus, Demophon and Akamant under Troy. In this way they wanted to justify their right to control the trade in Pontus Euxine, which completely passed into their hands after the fall of Troy and the decline of Rhodes (see 160.2-3 and 162.3).

King Eurystheus had a young daughter, Admet. One day she came to her father and said: "They say that far in the east there is a kingdom where women rule. Armed with arrows, they gallop on war horses and fight bravely against their enemies. They call themselves Amazons, despise men and are proud of their invincibility. My patroness Hera revealed to me that all the power of the Amazons is hidden in a simple leather belt, which the god of war Ares gave to his daughter, the queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta. While she wears this belt, no one can defeat her, and with her all the Amazons. Father! I want to be invincible like this woman, and reign without sharing power with anyone. I want to get the belt of Hippolyta! "

So there was another thing for Hercules worthy of his strength and courage. Eurystheus ordered Hercules to go for the belt of the queen of the Amazons.

Far is the way to the land of the Amazons. To reach the kingdom of Hippolyta, it was necessary to cross the Middle Sea to its eastern shores, and there, passing through two narrow straits, sail further east along the waters of another sea - Pontus Euxine. Where the hot river Fermodont flows into the Euxine Sea, there is Themiscira - the main city of the country of the Amazons.

Hercules equipped the ship, invited his faithful friends with him - Iolaus, the Athenian prince Theseus and others. On the appointed day, Hercules' ship set sail and went to sea.

The first anchorage of the ship was on the island of Paros, where the sons of the Cretan king Minos ruled. On this island, the sons of Minos killed two companions of Hercules. Hercules got angry with the princes. He killed many of the inhabitants of Paros, but drove others into the city and kept them under siege until the besieged ambassadors were sent to Hercules with a request that he take any two inhabitants of the city instead of the killed companions. Then Hercules lifted the siege and took the grandsons of Minos Alkeus and Sfenelus instead of those killed.

From Paros, Hercules arrived in Mysia to the king Likus, who received him with great hospitality. In gratitude, Hercules helped Lik to defeat the tribe of lawless bebriks, with whom Lik had been at enmity for a long time.

Further, the path of the ship ran to Troy. The Trojan kingdom was ruled at that time by Laomedont, one of the most arrogant kings, who despised even the gods. Once he decided to strengthen the already impregnable Trojan walls. To test the Trojan king, Apollo and Poseidon offered him their help for a very small fee. For a whole year, like simple bricklayers, the gods worked, strengthening the fortress walls of Troy, but they did not receive the promised reward. The arrogant king even threatened to cut off their ears if they demanded payment for their work. Then the angry Apollo sent a plague to the possessions of Laomedont, and Poseidon - a monster that devastated, sparing no one, the vicinity of Troy. The king called the soothsayers, and they announced to him: "Give your beloved daughter Hesion to be devoured by a monster, and the gods will tame their wrath." It was necessary for Laomedont, at the request of the people, to leave young Hesiona on the shore, tightly tying her to the sea cliff.

Here Hercules saw Hesion when his ship approached the Trojan coast. He took off the fetters from the young maiden, doomed to a terrible death, and took her to her father. "I return to you, king, your beloved daughter. On the way to your palace, I learned that she is an atoning sacrifice for your arrogance. And do not you regret giving your beloved child to be devoured by the sea monster? I would like to fight this monster, and, if my strength is enough, defeat him. And I ask for a small fee: only four good horses. "

Laomedont gladly accepted the offer of Hercules, and promised not ordinary horses as a reward, but immortals, whom he received from Zeus as a ransom for the son of Ganymede, carried away by the Thunderer to Olympus.

Hercules went to the seashore. He began to wait for the monster to come out of the sea. I waited all day. Only in the evening did the monster crawl out onto land. It opened its gigantic mouth and rushed at Hercules. And Hercules just needed this: he himself jumped into the monster's throat and began to strike with a sharp sword from within his insatiable womb.

The monster died. Hercules got out of his womb, washed off the disgusting thick mucus from himself with sea water and went for the promised reward.

"A dead monster lies on the shore," Hercules said to Laomedont. "Go and look at him if you want. Where are your four immortal horses?"

The Trojan king laughed: “Why do you need horses, Hercules?

“Okay, - restraining his anger, Hercules replied, - I really have a ship, and soon I will return on it to continue the conversation with you about what can be called good and what is bad.”

And again the ship of Hercules went to sea. His path lay through the narrow strait separating Europe from Asia, through the Hellespont to the stormy Pontus of Euxine.

This part of the journey was well known to Hercules: he passed here with Jason in the high-speed "Argo". But then the death of his favorite, young Hilas, forced Hercules to return halfway back to Mycenae.

Hercules looked sadly at the shore, where his young friend disappeared. And the ship, cutting through the green waves, quickly raced farther and farther east.

Finally, the fresh wind of the Euxine Pontus, tirelessly filling the sail, brought the ship of Hercules to the mouth of the river, swirling with steam. This was Fermodont. From here it was already a stone's throw to the capital of the Amazons, Themiscira.

The gates of Themiscira were locked when Hercules approached the city with a small detachment. The gate was guarded by an Amazon guard in a leather helmet, a short tunic, with a small, moon-like shield in her hands and an ax with two semicircular blades.

"Why did you, foreigners, come to our land? What do you need in the kingdom of women warriors?" the guard asked.

"Not of my own free will I came here with my friends," Hercules answered her. "King Mycenaeus Eurystheus sent me. His daughter Admeta wants to own your queen's belt. If your queen gives me this belt, I will serve her any service."

"The queen will be reported about this, - said the guard, - wait."

Soon a detachment of horsemen marched out of the city gates. It was Queen Hippolyta with her inner circle. “Who needs my belt? Isn't it you, bearded giant?” Hippolyta asked, turning to Hercules. get it, but only in battle. "

Without another word, Hippolyta turned her horse around and headed into the city, followed by her armed detachment. Only the closest friend of Hippolyta, the beautiful Antiope, hesitated a little: she could not take her eyes off the stately companion of Hercules, the Athenian prince Theseus.

Like an indomitable forest fire, love for Theseus flared up in Antiope's heart. She knew that the Amazons were invincible as long as Hippolyta was in possession of the coveted belt, she knew that a battle with aliens was inevitable and that Theseus would inevitably die in this battle.

Late at night, Antiope made her way to the camp of Hercules, quietly entered Theseus' tent and put at his feet the belt of Hippolyta that she had stolen from her.

And early in the morning, a battle broke out under the walls of Themiscira. Like a whirlwind, the Amazons flew into the camp of Hercules. Ahead of all was the most impetuous of the Amazons, Aela. It was with her that Hercules fought. Reflecting her onslaught, he put her to flight and struck with a sword. Another Amazon, Protoe, slain seven companions of Hercules, but she herself fell at the hands of the son of Zeus. Then three Amazons attacked Hercules at once, three magnificent hunters, whom Artemis herself took with her to hunt - they had no equal in javelin throwing. Three spears flew at once at Hercules, but they all missed the mark.

Fear seized the Amazons. "Woe to us! Where is your belt, Hippolyta!" they shouted.

A pang of conscience squeezed the heart of Antiope, who betrayed her friends, but love for Theseus defeated all other feelings in her.

With despair in her soul, Queen Hippolyta rushed into the thick of the battle. She knew that her cherished belt was in the hands of the enemy. Hercules struck her with his arrow.

Seeing the death of their queen, the Amazons fled. Many of them were taken prisoner, many were killed.

Hercules gave the captive Antiope to Theseus. Here the reason for such an easy victory over the Amazons was revealed. "Take, friend, the belt of Hippolyta," Theseus said to Hercules, "and say thank you to my captive Antiope." Hercules did not answer, for there was something dishonest in the victory over the Amazons. "

In Mycenae, Hercules gave the belt of Hippolyta to Eurystheus, and he gave it to his daughter Admeta, but she was afraid to own it. "May this divine belt return to the gods," decided Admeta and gave it to the temple of Hera, as a gift to the goddess.

Hercules did not forget the insult inflicted on him by Laomedont. Now, having executed the next order of Eurystheus, Hercules decided that it was time to take revenge on the Trojan king for his treachery. With a small retinue, he landed on the Trojan coast. After a short siege, proud Troy fell. Laomedont and his sons were put to death, except for the youngest named Podark. "I give life to the last of the Trojan kings," said Hercules, "but first he must be sold as a slave." When the Gift was put up for sale, his sister Hesiona, rescued by Hercules from the sea monster, ransomed her brother, giving him a gilded veil that adorned her head. So Podark received the name Priam, which means "bought". By the will of fate, he really turned out to be the last Trojan king.