William Moulton Marston, a psychologist who had helped invent the polygraph, wanted a superhero who would win with love instead of force. His wife, Elizabeth, suggested that the hero be a woman. Marston designed Wonder Woman as a model of a strong, liberated woman, and he described her as psychological propaganda for a new type of woman who should rule the world. The character debuted in All Star Comics #8 in October 1941, with H. G. Peter drawing the art. Marston also drew inspiration from the bracelets worn by Olive Byrne, who lived with the couple. His writing about gender and power, and his unconventional relationships, still shape how historians read the character.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.