ABSTRACT
The idea that at some historic time women dominated culture politically, economically, and socially is so radical a concept that its mention tends to evoke reactions of fear, rejection, or ridicule. Images of one-breasted, sword-wielding Amazons, devouring mothers, spell-casting witches, seem to overwhelm consideration and abort rational reflection. Yet we are confronted with archeological evidence, spanning thousands of years, of a predominance of female figures and fertility images in cave-wall paintings, rock art, remains of apparent religious buildings, figurines, and portraits (see e.g. Levy 1948; Goff 1963; Mellaart 1967; Gimbutas 1982, 1989). Did women rule in these societies from the Upper Paleolithic, 40,000 BCE, through most of the Neolithic, 7000 to 3500 BCE, in Europe, Asia, the Near East, Africa, even Australia?
