IN THE BEGINNING ... THE GODDESSES

ARTIFACTS OF THE SACRED FEMALE

Goddess worship is found in the religious traditions of ancient Canaan, Sumeria, Egypt, India, Native North America, Western Europe, Australia, and Africa. Stone statuettes, such as the Venus of Willendorf, indicate that Goddess worship existed as early as 30,000 years ago, during the Paleolithic and Neolithic ages; and it survives, most notably in modern Hinduism. Begin to explore the many depictions of the Warrior Goddess and her sisters here.

THE HISTORIES OF WARRIOR WOMEN, GODDESSES AND QUEENS WORLDWIDE, COMING SOON

"I am Isis, the Mistress of every land ... I gave and ordained Laws for men, which no one is able to change ... I am she that rises in the Dogstar, she who is called Goddess by women ... I made man strong ... I am the queen of war. I am the queen of the thunderbolt. I stir up the sea and calm it. I am the rays of the Sun." - Ptolemaic creed *

TERRACOTTA ASTARTE/ISHTAR GODDESS OF WAR (SYRO-HITTITE 2ND MILL. BC)

GOLD RING WITH CARNELIAN INTAGLIO FIGURE OF VENUS/APHRODITE GODDESS OF LOVE AND CONSORT OF ARES GOD OF WAR (ROMAN c.1ST/2D C. AD)

SILVER AMULET OF FORTUNA - FORTUNA BELLI; FATE OF WAR (ROMAN 2D C. AD)

RED FIGURE MUG FEATURING DIONYSIAN (BACCHANALIAN) MAENAD (BACCHAE); FRENZIED REVELERS AND VICIOUS HUNTERS

LARGE SARCOPHAGUS PANEL INCLUDING IMAGE OF GODDESS HATHOR - AS A COW - ASSOCIATED WITH THE WAR GODDESSES ASTARTE AND SEKHMET BUT HER MAIN ASSOCIATIONS ARE MOTHERHOOD, FERTILITY AND LOVE (EGYPTIAN c.1069-945 BC)

THE WARRIOR GODDESS ATHENA (MINERVA)
ATHENA IS GODDESS OF WAR, WISDOM AND CREATIVE ARTS

CHALCEDONY BEAD FEATURING SYMBOLS OF ATHENA; THE COCKERAL, OLIVE TREE AND FLUTE (GREEK c.600-300 BC)

BRONZE MIRROR WITH BUST OF ATHENA IN ARMOR FEATURING FACE OF MEDUSA (ROMAN 1ST C. AD)

THE WARRIOR HUNTRESS ARTEMIS (DIANA)
PATRONESS OF THE AMAZONS

SILVER NECKLACE AND PENDANT WORN BY CULT OF ISIS WORSHIPER OF ARTEMIS/ISIS FEATURING SYMBOL OF ARTEMIS, SILVER SANDALS (ROMAN 1ST C. AD). BY THE ROMAN PERIOD, ARTEMIS (GR.), DIANA (ROM.) AND ISIS (EGYPT.) BECAME THE UNIFIED VIRGIN GODDESS, THE MOON GODDESS

SILVER RING WITH CARNELIAN INTAGLIO FIGURE OF MINERVA/ARTEMIS (ROMAN 1ST/2D C. AD)

DURGA BEARING WEAPONS

SILVER HINDU GODDESS OF WAR DURGA PENDANT (INDIA, 19TH C. AD)
LEARN ABOUT THE HINDU GODDESS OF TIME, DESTRUCTION AND LIBERATION KALI MA AT THE XENA MUSEUM

MUSEUM OF WARRIOR WOMEN TM HOME

VISIT THE XENA MUSEUM & ATHENAEUM TM

BRONZE ISIS (EGYPTIAN c.600 BC) QUEEN CLEOPATRA, RULER AND COMMANDER OF THE EGYPTIAN MILITARY, WAS WORSHIPED AS ISIS

FAIENCE SEKHMET WARRIOR AND HUNTRESS LION HEADED GODDESS - AMULET AND AMULET MOLD (EGYPTIAN c.400 BC)

TERRACOTTA GODDESS (CYPRIOT 8TH C. BC) THE CYPRIOT GODDESS HAS ASSOCIATIONS WITH APHRODITE (LOVE, FERTLITY) AND ASTARTE AND ANAT (THE WARRIORS)

FAIENCE AMULET OF ISIS, NEPHTHYS - WIFE OF WAR-LIKE SET - AND HORUS (EGYPTIAN c.500 BC)

TERRACOTTA APHRODITE (VENUS) (GODDESS OF LOVE BUT CONSORT OF ARES THE GOD OF WAR) (GREEK 1ST C. BC/AD)

* Fraser, Antonia, The Warrior Queens, (1990 pbk) p.37, cit. Grant, Michael, Cleopatra (1974 revised ed.).

NB. The Dogstar or Sirius, was worshiped as Sothis by the ancients. Sothis was a destructive and greatly feared goddess (perhaps akin to Sekhmet, or an Egyptian equivalent of the Hindu Kali).

__________