Editing Hippolyta (section)

== Legends ==
[[File:Nicolaes Knüpfer - Hercules Obtaining the Girdle of Hyppolita - WGA12217.jpg|thumb|''[[Labours of Hercules|Heracles]] Obtaining the Belt of Hyppolita'' by [[Nikolaus Knüpfer]]]]

=== Ninth Labor of Heracles ===
In the myth of Heracles, Hippolyta's belt ({{lang|grc|ζωστὴρ Ἱππολύτης}}, ''zōstḗr Hippolytēs'') was the object of his [[Labours of Heracles|ninth labour]]. He was sent to retrieve it for [[Admete]], the daughter of King [[Eurystheus]].<ref>[[Euripides]], ''[[Herakles (Euripides)|Herakles]]'', 408 ''sqq''; Apollonius Rhodius, ''Argonautica'', II. 777 ''sqq''. and 966 ''sqq''; Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca Historica'', IV. 16; Ps.-Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheke'', II. 5. 9; Pausanias, ''Hellados Periegesis'', V. 10. 9; Quintus Smyrnaeus, ''Posthomerica'', VI. 240 ''sqq''; Hyginus, ''Fabulae'', 30.</ref> Most versions of the myth indicate that Hippolyta was so impressed with Heracles that she gave him the belt without argument (In some versions she engaged in sexual intercourse with [[Heracles]]), perhaps while visiting him on his ship. Then, according to [[Apollodorus]], the goddess [[Hera]], making herself appear as one of the Amazons, spread a rumour among them that Heracles and his crew were abducting their queen, so the Amazons attacked the ship. Among Hippolyta's warriors was [[Aella (Amazon)|Aella]], who was the first to charge at Heracles during the battle. Despite her courage, she fell to Heracles, who, clad in the invulnerable skin of the [[Nemean lion]], defeated her and the other Amazons.<ref>Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca Historica'', IV. 16.3; Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheke'', II. 5.9; Euripides, ''Herakles'', 408 ''sqq''.</ref> Ultimately, he overpowered Hippolyta, stripped her of the belt, and sailed away, thus fulfilling his labor.

=== Adventure of Theseus ===
In the myth of [[Theseus]], the hero joined Heracles in his expedition or went on a separate expedition later, and was the one who had the encounter with Hippolyta. Some versions say he abducted her, some that Heracles did the abducting but gave her to Theseus as spoils, and others say that she fell in love with Theseus and betrayed the Amazons by willingly leaving with him. In any case, she was taken to Athens where she was wed to Theseus. In some renditions, the other Amazons became enraged at the marriage and attacked Athens. This was the [[Attic War]], in which they were defeated by Athenian forces under Theseus or Heracles. In other renditions, Theseus later put Hippolyta aside to marry [[Phaedra (mythology)|Phaedra]]. So Hippolyta rallied her Amazons to attack the wedding ceremony. When the defenders closed the doors on the attackers, either Hippolyta was killed, Theseus directly killed her in the fight, she was accidentally killed by another Amazon, [[Molpadia]], while fighting by Theseus' side, or was accidentally killed by her sister [[Penthesilea]] during this battle or in a separate incident. This killer was in turn slain by Theseus or [[Achilles]]. Some stories paint Theseus in a more favorable light, saying that Hippolyta was dead before he and Phaedra were wed, and this battle did not occur. Further complicating the narratives, several ancient writers say the Amazon in question was not Hippolyta at all, but her sister [[Antiope (Amazon)|Antiope]], [[Melanippe]], or [[Glauce]]. Moreover, there are combined versions of the tale in which Heracles abducts and kills Hippolyta while Theseus, assisted by [[Sthenelus]] and [[Telamon]], abducts and marries Antiope. There are also stories that Hippolyta or Antiope later bore Theseus a son, [[Hippolytus of Athens]].<ref>Isocrates, ''Orations'', XII. 193</ref><ref>Diodorus Siculus, ''Bibliotheca Historica'', II. 46. 5, IV. 28 and 64</ref><ref>Ps.-Apollodorus, ''Bibliotheke'', I. 16-17, V. 1-2</ref><ref>Seneca, ''Hippolytus'', 927 ''sqq''.</ref><ref>Plutarch, ''Theseus'', 26-28</ref><ref>Pausanias, ''Hellados Periegesis'', I. 2. 1, I. 15. 2, I. 41. 7, II. 32. 9, V. 11. 4 and 7</ref><ref>Quintus Smyrnaeus, ''Posthomerica'', I. 18 ''sqq''., 227 ''sqq''., 538 ''sqq''.</ref><ref name="auto"/>