History often depicts men leading warfare and being  hunters, whilst women were the gatherers. But that view appears to be flawed, with forensic anthropologists unearthing new evidence that suggests otherwise.

Warriors are generally defined through skeletal evidence showing signs of prolonged horseback riding, archery and trauma patterns. By analysing skeletons, scientists found that a number of women showed similar injuries to male warriors – damage from arrows and other sharp objects.

Of course, it is possible that women were killed in surprise raids and other attacks, thus explaining the similar injuries. So how can researchers tell if women died protecting their village or fighting as warriors side by side to men?

Some women show signs of having ridden horses in combat. Apart from the changes from prolonged changes to bone structure, scientists also noted the type of the skeletal injuries indicating falls from horses, possibly during combat.

Another strong indicator is also findings on women buried with weapons and other battle artefacts. Whilst usually tombs would be looted and any war-related objects long gone, some graves include weapons and war gear. All this evidence points to periods in history were women warriors fought alongside men.

For more information and links to the scientific papers, check here: https://bit.ly/2BgfpZi