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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 305
EAN num: 9780446679831
ISBN number: 0446679836
Label: Grand Central Publishing
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 288
Printing Date: 2003-02
Publishing house: Grand Central Publishing
Sale Popularity Level: 407830
Studio: Grand Central Publishing
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Product Description:
This text explores the lost world of women warriors that stretches from Europe to Asia. Through her work, Jeannine Davis-Kimball has unearthed an entire ancient class of women who defy historical assumptions because for centuries women wielded tremendous power in territories from China to the ancient Celtic lands. In her search for the truth, she reveals: the origin of the Amazons, a fierce nomadic tribe of women who inspired legends; a mysterious mummified priestess found in China - but of Celtic origin; banshees - historically lonely, screeching hags but they can be traced back to powerful Celtic fertility symbols; the excavation of a site on the Eurasian Steppe filled with powerful members of an ancient nomadic cult, previously always thought to be men. Modern women should find this look at history enlightening and empowering. The book weaves science, mythology and mystical cultures into an historical tapestry depicting some of the unsung heroes and leaders of the past.
Amazon.com Review:
Was Herodotus's account of the Amazons fact or fiction? Archaeologist Jeannine Davis-Kimball, in Warrior Women, an account of her digs at burial sites of Eurasian nomads, finds it an embellishment of the former. But, she posits, women's place in that world was generally more exalted than previously thought.
Nearly one-quarter of the women buried in some late Iron Age sites were either warriors or priestesses. Even the remainder, 'hearth women,' were important players in the tribes' surprisingly egalitarian societies. Further, southern Kazakhstan's famous 'gold man' was in fact, a 'gold woman.' Davis-Kimball also finds solid evidence of 'high status' women in graves as far east as China and as far west as Ireland.
Warrior Women is, thankfully, free of lazy sensationalism. But it is frustratingly organized, with little regard to either chronology or geography. Further, Davis-Kimball never places her finds in any sort of context, be it popular or scholarly. --H. O'Billovitch
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Rated by buyers -
I bought this book because, like the author, I had seen the traveling exhibit of the Nomads of the Steppes. It was a well mounted and very memorable exhibit that caught my imagination with the gorgeous gold artifacts. Occasionally I would see a reference to more information, the publication of the pictures related to the excavation at Pazyryk of a female that had been buried with the weapons as a man, a publicity release from the Soviet Union that Amazons had been the discovered, the Tarmin mummies from China, the fabulous fabrics discovered in certain burials.
Recently, I decided to delve further into this area, but I needed to know where to look-- hence Warrior Women. Part travelogue, part excavation journal, part sociology study, it has given me a jumping off place to look deeper into the specific areas that I am interested in pursuing.
I definitely agree with the author, I wish that someone would do an in depth examination of the Síle na Gig, the carved women exposing their genitals that are found not just in Ireland, but in England, Germany and France.
I also wish to note that the illustrations in this book are not particularly clear. They are grey and white but muddy looking rather than crisp. And certainly many of them, such as the gold suit from the Nomads of the Steppes exhibit (which might have been worn by a very petite young man or a woman) would have benefited from color. Also, when she talks about the similarities of the fabric found with the Tarmin mummies to Scottish tartans, a single illustration would have shown how extraordinary the similarity is.
The author also did a good job talking about how politics affects presentation or suppression of certain facts. I had no idea that Russian archeaology of the past was so slipshod when it came to preserving skeletal matter.
All in all lots to think about.
Rated by buyers 
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This book is a companion to the PBS documentary, Secrets of the Dead - Amazon Warrior Women. This book is part narrative of Davis-Kimball's journeys through archeology and part non-fiction history of women warriors. I learned quite a bit about women's history. The book not only focuses on the mythical Amazon and their possible historical basis in the steppes of Russia, but also includes information on warrior women in other parts of the world, including China, Ireland, and the Celts. I was absolutely fascinated by the amount of information including in this book.
Rated by buyers -
This book is an excellent account of the lost female warriors of history. Well researched and presented in a very easy to read style. Throughout the book there are sections which contain facts and data that link to the chapter that you are reading, this adds detail and interest to the topics.
The author J Davis-Kimball is very obviously enthused by her subject and recounts her archaeological experiences with a keen eye for detail and story telling.
Overall a very enjoyable and enlightening read.
Rated by buyers -
This is a fascinating book written by an equally fascinating woman. After raising six children and working as a nurse in Idaho and cattle rancher in South America, Dr. Jeannine Davis-Kimball went back to school and earned a bachelor's degree in art history from California State University at Northridge at 49, becoming the very first woman in her family to obtain a degree. Her interest in past civilizations motivated her to obtain a master's degree and then a Ph.D., and when she went on an archealogical dig in Israel for a "lark," she discovered her true life's passion.
Her book is certainly no dry technical dissertation on archeological finds! Dr. Davis-Kimball is a gifted writer who knows how to tell a story and convey a bit of history, anthropology, and her own observations of human behavior in a very entertaining manner. Her book reads like a novel with an interesting storyline and detailed character descriptions of the people who accompany her on her explorations, as well as the nomads she lives with and studies. When she begins her career as an archeaologist, she notes that the western views of ancient peoples have relegated women to motherhood and tending the household. She finds that her learned colleagues are quick to characterize graves with weapons as male, something she begins to dispute in light of Russian evidence that there were once women warriors in the nomadic tribes. Dr. Davis-Kimball's research eventually proves this fact and she takes the reader along in the caravans of trucks she and her group take to remote locations in Russia and China where they camp weeks on-end like nomads themselves, digging in temperatures that soar above 100 degrees during the day and below freezing at night. Much of her research incorporates the cultures of the nomadic tribes that still wander Siberia and Asia today, as their traditions and way of living is virtually the same as centuries ago, and she was fortunate to be welcomed into the tribal group and allowed to participate in tribal rituals as well as their daily life.
Along with the story of her excavations and stays with nomadic tribes, she includes sidebars throughout the book on various topics from the Sheila-na-gigs and women warriors of Celtic Ireland to the status of prostitutes in ancient Greece. The book is a celebration and proof that women have indeed been warriors and priestesses and held positions of power and influence throughout history, and then as times changed, been relegated to less important roles or executed for trying to exert themselves as warriors.
Rated by buyers -
I think I found out about this book when I was looking up information about Amazons. It is very informative and I liked the way the book was organized. I lent this book to my Physical Anthropology teacher and she likes it.
I do have to admit that I was unsure about the Mother Goddess information - I don't think that there was one religion focused on a Mother Goddess at that time - but everything else looked well researched.
I recommend this book for anyone who is interested in women in military roles and it's history (in ancient times that is).
It's definitely worth your time.
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