Powerful Women From Ancient Greece Quiz

Answer: Swimmer and diver

Hydna was born around 465 BC. Her father was a renowned swimming and diving instructor and she became a good pupil of that endeavor. Their area, near Athens, was in a long-running war with Persia. In 480 BC the Persian leader, Xerxes I, sent part of his navy offshore of Hydna's home. When a terrific storm came up, Hydna and her father swam almost ten miles out in the sea and dived beneath the Persian ships.

They took out their knives and cut the mooring rope lines beneath the waves. One by one, the ships lost control and sailed directly into the path of the storm. The fleet was destroyed. Hydna and her father were considered heroes and statues of them were placed in Delphi.

Answer: Poet, specializing in animal epitaphs

Anyte was from Tegea, which was a very rural part of ancient Greece. She lived in the 3rd century BC and was a poetess. Anyte was called "the woman-Homer" and wrote on a variety of topics.

She was the author of at least 19 poems, which is the greatest amount of surviving poetry from a woman of this period next to Sappho. Anyte wrote epitaphs for animals and girls who died young. An example of her writing is one she did for a rooster. She wrote "You'll wake me no more at first light as before flapping your fast-beating wings with the dawn." She also wrote a bit about the sea, so historians suspect she traveled as far as the coast.

Answer: Defender of her city

Telesilla of Argos was a lyric poet and the mastermind behind the defense of Argos when it was invaded by Sparta. She lived in the 5th century BC and was sickly as a child, often visiting the oracle to aid her health. This is when she learned she should devote herself to the Muses. She became a lyric poet.

Telesilla became even more famous when she saved Argos. The Spartan king Cleomenes I marched on to Argos to conquer the city. He cruelly killed most of the defenders on the way and even burned down sacred olive groves. When Telesilla heard he was coming, she gathered other women, children, and the elderly for defense of the city. To the surprise of the Spartans, the women did not give ground and fought bravely. Faced with either losing to women and garnering shame or to slaughter innocents, the Spartan king called off the battle and city was saved. Telesilla was honored for centuries in annual celebrations and with several statues in her memory.

Answer: Courtesan, famous for a court trial

Phryne was born around 370 BC and lived in Athens. Her birth name was Mnesarete but was called Phryne ("toad") because of a yellowish tone to her complexion. She grew into a beautiful young lady and became a model for many painters and sculptors. She also was a paid courtesan and became very wealthy and used her money to help rebuild parts of the city.

What has made her truly famous, however, is her court trial where she was accused of a capital crime (probably impiety). Her current lover, Hypereides, was her defender in court. In the middle of the case, he tore off Phryne's robes to show everyone how beautiful she was as a naked woman. His reasoning was that only the Gods could create such a perfect body so killing or imprisoning her would be blasphemy.

Phryne walked out of the court a free woman and went on to become even more desired as a model and courtesan. Historians see her as a symbol of freedom against repression disguised as piety.

Answer: Philosopher, focusing on hedonism

Arete of Cyrene was born around 400 BC to a father who had founded a philosophical school known as the Cyrenaics. She grew up studying this philosophy and was one of the few women of the time who made it a career.

The philosophy that she taught and wrote about was based on hedonism. She believed pleasure to be the point and goal of life and people should never defer pleasure. The school taught that people should enjoy all pleasures that come their way. They also believed that people should not become too preoccupied with pleasure and should keep in mind that pain is the counterbalance.

Arete ran the school after her father died and continued the hedonism philosophy along with the idea of equality of sex and race. She was considered a star of her day and authored over forty manuscripts. Her tomb's epitaph states she "was the splendor of Greece and that she possessed the beauty of Helen, the virtue of Thirma, the soul of Socrates, and the tongue of Homer".

Answer: Philosopher, focusing on cynicism

Hipparchia was born around 330 BC to a family in the local aristocracy. When her brother was sent to the Cynic philosophy school, he came back and introduced it to Hipparchia. Following the philosophy, she rejected contemporary civilization and society and frowned on comfort and amenities. She believed in living a natural life and only using basics required for pure survival.

As a young woman, she met Crates, an Athenian who was one of the great cynic leaders. She fell madly in love and threatened suicide until he proposed. They got married and consummated their wedding on the courthouse steps in public, in keeping with their call to live naturally. Hipparchia would go on to teach, write many works, and promote lack of respectability and conforming to others' ideas of 'right'.

Hipparchia influenced many people, including the founder of Stoicism. She was a liberated woman in a male-dominated society. There are statues of her, a city named for her, and even a butterfly named the Hipparchia.

Answer: Courageous hero of the Pythagoras philosophy

Timycha of Sparta lived around 375 BC. She had been born in Lacedemon and was the wife of Mylias. At this time, it was not just Athens that had many philosophers. Sparta had a growing number, including women. Timycha also studied mythology and poetry. She soon became a fan of the Pythagorean philosophy. As such, she believed the idea that numbers are fundamental to reality and that souls migrated into a new body after death.

The tyrant ruler of Syracuse was named Dionysius at this time. He came across Timycha, Mylias, and others and offered his friendship. When they refused, he pursued them to a field of beans. Here the group stopped because crushing the plants in crossing the field was taboo to the Pythagoreans' worship of life. Dionysius had most of them killed except for Timycha, who was six months pregnant, and her husband. The order was given to torture Timycha in hopes she would reveal more about the Pythagorean belief. She bit off her own tongue in case she would be tempted to reveal secret doctrines. She would forevermore be considered a hero to the Pythagoreans due to her extreme courage under duress and her convictions to her cause.

Answer: Author and proponent of lesbianism

Philaenis lived around 470 BC in the area of Samos. The area was known for expensive hetairas. An hetaira is a woman hired for entertainment that often leads to sexual encounters.

Philaenis became famous for writing a book about the best sexual positions, colognes, cosmetics, kissing, seduction, and flirtation. She also included medical advice such as how to prevent potential pregnancy. She was a strong proponent of lesbianism and covered it extensively in the book. The tome became extremely popular and also caused outcry and controversy. The controversy was actually caused more by the fact it was written by a woman than the contents.

Her name, historians think, is probably a pseudonym to protect the true female author of the book. Pieces of parchment from the book were found in an old Egyptian dump site. An example of a tip she gave on the paper was "To an ugly woman, say that she is 'fascinating' and to a middle-aged one, that she is a wild pigeon".

Answer: Physician specializing in midwifery

Agnodice lived in the 4th century BC in Athens. As she grew up, she became horrified at the number of deaths (both mothers and babies) during childbirth. She wanted to help. The problem was that women were forbidden to practice any kind of medicine. So she cut off her hair, dressed herself as a male, and went to Alexandria. There she studied under Herophilus, a Greek doctor, and returned home to practice midwifery.

One of her first patients was embarrassed to be treated by a man during childbirth. So Agnodice removed several pieces of clothing to prove she was a woman. She began attending all of her visits this way and gaining the trust of the female population. Doctors in the area grew suspicious that a man was working so many cases and brought "him" to trial for seduction. In court, Agnodice disrobed and proved she was a woman. She was sentenced to death. In response, the women of Athens stormed the court and defended her.

Because of these actions, Agnodice was cleared of all charges. Athens changed the laws. Women were henceforth allowed to legally study and practice medicine, particularly midwifery, in the city-state. She began the momentum for women in the medical field.

Answer: Infamous traitor of Greece

Thargelia lived around 550 BC in the Greek city-state of Miletus on the eastern side of the Mediterranean. During this time, Cyrus the Great ruled Persia and was an enemy of Greece. Thargelia, however, was pro-Persia. She was remarkably beautiful and also had a reputation for charisma, shrewdness, and smartness. She was one of the more popular courtesans of the time.

Unlike others in her line of work, Thargelia married 14 times. Many of them were her customers. During interactions, she quietly listened and memorized Greek war plans and dates. She then acted as a double-agent and turned in the information to Cyrus and Persian armies. When it was discovered, she was scorned by all and her name forevermore became synonymous with "traitor".