ABSTRACT
As his next labour, Herakles went to the land of the Amazons to fetch the belt or ‘girdle’ of their queen, HIPPOLYTE. This was a heavy warrior’s belt (zo¯ste¯r) rather than the light girdle that would have formed part of the ordinary clothing of women; Apollodorus calls it the belt of Ares and indicates that it was a symbol of Hippolyte’s sovereignty.91 Although the same author goes on to explain that Eurystheus sent for it because his daughter Admete wanted to acquire it, such an object would have been desirable in itself and well-suited to serve as a token of success, and it need not be assumed that any such explanation would have been offered or required in the early tradition. According to Euripides, the belt was deposited at Mycenae, presumably at the Heraion, along with a gold-spangled robe that had belonged to the queen.92
