The Amazons seem to have been a part of some of the earliest Greek myths, as they are mentioned by Homer in terms that imply they were widely known of by his time. This famous all-female tribe were said to be mighty in arms and very proud, the equals of any of the tribes that surrounded them. Originally supposed to have come from North-west of Greece, as Greek knowledge of the wider world expanded, so their alleged location kept moving further away, until it was no longer specified at all.

This is not the first time that Amazons have been depicted in 1/72nd scale plastic (see our section on the various sets from Dark and Light Alliance for details), but it follows the familiar characteristics of such sets. Specifically, almost half of the poses are completely naked apart from a helmet, and the rest can mostly boast no more than a small loincloth. This follows the vast array of images and models of Amazons created in the modern era, but it is not how the Greeks themselves portrayed them. In the earlier images, Amazons are usually dressed as the gods (Athena and later Artemis), which meant wearing a dress of various lengths. Later, as the Greek understanding of the world expanded, they were normally dressed as ‘foreign’, which usually meant in either Persian or Scythian style. The modern taste for naked Amazons needs no explanation here, but it is modern. The helmets these figures wear are of course Greek in style, with six of the poses wearing full-face Corinthian-style examples, three having Illyrian ones and the last being Chalcidian. All would seem appropriate, as are the swords (both straight and kopis) and spears. The shields are all circular and flat, with a diameter of about 9 mm (65 cm to scale), making them a lot smaller than the box image would suggest.

The poses are an interesting mix, although there are few that seem to suggest actual combat. Many are just standing still, and even those with weapon drawn (such as the second figure in our top row) don’t give the impression of any action. There is just a single archer, but the figure with a whip is an unusual addition. The warrior about to throw a spear is quite flat, with the spear directly over her head in a very unnatural (i.e. anatomically impossible) posture, but for the most part the lack of action means the poses are at least natural. The last, seated figure, is the only one that could be considered as useful for a real historical scene, but overall the poses are reasonable if undynamic.

The sculpting is very nice on these figures, with the human form being nicely and sympathetically done. Such detail as there is, like the medusa-head on the shield, is well done, although we thought that the massive sword being carried by the spear-thrower looked too burdensome for her. All the weapons and shields are sculpted with the figure rather than separate, which can cause compromise problems, but actually no one here has their shield in a particularly poor position, so the effect is good. We also found hardly any flash on our example, nor any excess plastic that would need trimming away.

As a modern perception of what Amazons look like, these tick all the boxes. Almost all are armed, although few seem to actually be in a fight, but the sculpting is very nice indeed, so this set is likely to please those who are fans of the subject.