Lampedo | Amazon Queen

Lampado (Gr. Λαμπετώ "burning torch") - in Greek mythology, queen of the Amazons, descendant of the brave queen Lysippe, who conquered many tribes, sister of the Amazon queen Marpesia.

Lampado, along with two other Amazon queens, Marpesia and Hippo, conquered much of Asia Minor and Syria and founded the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Kyrene and Myrine. The work of the Amazons also includes the cities of Tiba and Synope.

In Ephesus, they set up an image of Artemis under a beech tree, at which Hippo made offerings. After the offerings were made, her companions performed first a shield dance and then a whirling dance, shaking their quivers and striking out in unison to the accompaniment of pipes.

The temple of Artemis Ephialtes built later around this statue surpassed even the temple of Apollo at Delphi in magnificence. It was surrounded by two rivers, both named Selenos and flowing in opposite directions.

It was during this expedition that the Amazons captured Troy, at a time when Priam was still a child. Some of the Amazons' troops returned with rich booty, while the rest remained to consolidate their power in Asia Minor.

The Roman historian Marcus Junianus Justinianus of the 2nd century AD described two unparalleled warrior queens of the Amazons, the sisters Lampado and Marpesia, who ruled together, having divided their forces into two armies.

According to him, they proclaimed that they were daughters of Ares to make their warrior nature famous. He claimed that after controlling most of Europe, they also conquered some cities in Asia.

Italian writer Giovanni Boccaccio devoted separate chapters to Lampado and Marpesia in his moralistic treatise On Famous Women (1361, revised to 1375), in which he described one hundred and two biographies of mythical, ancient and medieval women.