Wednesday, May 31, 2023

18C Women Around the World

Costumes de Differents Pays, by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur (France, 1757-1810) c 1797 Hand-Colored Engraving from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

By the end of the 18C, worldwide exploration & colonization by Europeans were fairly commonplace, enabling the late 18C & 19C public to catch a glimpse of the clothing & customs of other peoples.

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

18C Women Around the World

Costumes de Differents Pays, by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur (France, 1757-1810) c 1797 Hand-Colored Engraving from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

By the end of the 18C, worldwide exploration & colonization by Europeans were fairly commonplace, enabling the late 18C & 19C public to catch a glimpse of the clothing & customs of other peoples.

Monday, May 29, 2023

15-17C Women of Hungary & Bohemia

1519 Hans Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530) Anne, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia. A bit about Anne -Anna of Bohemia & Hungary (1503-1547), sometimes known as Anna Jagellonica, was Queen of Germany, Bohemia, & Hungary & Archduchess of Austria as the wife of King Ferdinand I (later Holy Roman Emperor).Anna & Ferdinand had 15 children, all of whom were born in Bohemia or Austria. The kingdoms of both Bohemia & Hungary had suffered for centuries from premature deaths among heirs & a shortage of succession prospects, a predicament resolved by Anne's impressive fertility. Anna served as Queen Consort of Bohemia & as one of 3 living Queens of Hungary until her death.

In the 1400-1600s, Hungary & Bohemia were part of the Kingdom of Hungary, a multiethnic & multicultural state. And, of course, the lives of women during this time varied greatly depending on their social class, ethnicity, & religion.  You will quickly see that the portraits here are of women from the topmost social class, at least for a part of their lives.

1520 Hans Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530)  Queen Anne of Bohemia and of Hungary

Noblewomen, who belonged to the upper class depending on who won the last war, enjoyed a fairly privileged life compared to women of lower classes. They were often educated & could read & write, had access to healthcare including medicinal herbs & to social events.  Queen Anna & her sister Mary were sent to Innsbruck by their father Maximilian  He rarely visited, but he sent his hunter home to instruct the 2 girls in the art of hunting. There was emphasis on their abilities to handle weapons & other physical skills. The Humanist education they enjoyed focused on problem-solving skills. They were also instructed in dancing, music, & came in contact with many humanists visiting the imperial library there.

1520 Hans Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530) Queen Mary of Austria

The elite could participate in political & economic decision-making to a rather limited extent. They were also expected to marry for political alliances & produce heirs, but they had a bit more choice of their spouce than their mothers & those of lower classes.

1521 Hans Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530)  Anna of Bohemia and Hungary

Women of the middle & lower classes had fewer opportunities & more restrictions. They were expected to marry & have children, & their roles were primarily confined to the domestic sphere. They usually had to work hard in their households, farms & gardens, & creating & marketing crafts to help support their families. Their education was limited, & the majority of these women could not read or write. They had fewer opportunities for social mobility & faced greater discrimination & exploitation than noblewomen.

1525 Hans Krell (Polish artist, c 1490-1565) Mary, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia

In addition, religion played a significant role in the lives of women in Hungary & Bohemia during this time. Most people were Catholic or Protestant, & religious institutions dominated in shaping women's daily lives. 

1529 Jakob Seisenegger (Austrian painter, 1505–1567) , Anna z Rozmitalu, 1529

Nuns & female monastic orders provided some women with opportunities for education, to become scribes, & some women achieved religious authority as healers & midwives for other women, mystics or visionaries. However, the church also restricted women's access to certain roles & occupations & generally reinforced traditional gender roles.

1540 Artist Unknown but after Jakob Seisenegger (Austrian painter, 1505–1567) Anne of Hungary and Bohemia, Queen of the Romans

Overall, the lives of women in Hungary & Bohemia during the 1400-1600s were shaped by social class, ethnicity, religion, & traditional, unequal gender roles. While noblewomen had more agency & opportunities, most women of lower classes were expected to work hard in their households & had little or no access to educationor social mobility.

Hans Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530) Maria Welzer von Eberstein 

Maler zu Schwaz (1490–1530)  Anne of Hungary and Bohemia, Queen of the Romans

1530 Jan Cornelisz. Vermeyen (circa 1504–1559) Mary (1505–1558), Queen of Hungary

1531 A portrait of Dowager Queen Mary by the Master of the Legend of the Magdalen

x 1560 Titian Tiziano Vercelli (Italian painter, 1488-1576) Mary of Hungary Regent of the Netherlands

Sunday, May 28, 2023

18C Women Around the World


Costumes de Differents Pays, by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur (France, 1757-1810) c 1797 Hand-Colored Engraving from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

By the end of the 18C, worldwide exploration & colonization by Europeans were fairly commonplace, enabling the late 18C & 19C public to catch a glimpse of the clothing & customs of other peoples.

Saturday, May 27, 2023

19C Women Food & Flower Vendors on the Streets of London

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804.  Baking or Boiling Apples

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Buy a Bill of the Play (and snacks)

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Cats and Dogs Meat

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Cherries

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Lavender

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Mackerel

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Milk Below

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. New Potatoes

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Strawberries

William Marshall Craig’s Itinerant Traders of London in their Ordinary Costume...1804. Chairs to Mend (Weaving new seats into chairs)

Friday, May 26, 2023

18C Women Around the World

Costumes de Differents Pays, by Jacques Grasset de Saint-Sauveur (France, 1757-1810) c 1797 Hand-Colored Engraving from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

By the end of the 18C, worldwide exploration & colonization by Europeans were fairly commonplace, enabling the late 18C & 19C public to catch a glimpse of the clothing & customs of other peoples.

Thursday, May 25, 2023

16C European Women

1500 Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (1467-1516) Portrait of a Lady as St Lucy

1500 Gentile Bellini (1429-1507) Portrait of Caterina Cornaro, Queen of Cyprus

1500 Master of the Joseph Sequence (fl 1479-1500) Johanna I van Castilië

1500 perhaps by Niklas Reiser Maria von Burgund (1457-1482)

1500 Pietro Perugino (1448-1523) Pietro Magdalen

1500s Claude de France (1499-1524) and her daughters (Louise, Charlotte, Madeleine and Marguerite) and Eleonore of Habsbourg

1503 Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) Kopf der Maria

1505 Boccaccio Boccaccino (1460-1525) Gypsy Girl

1505 Giorgione (Giorgio Barbarelli from Castelfranco 1477-1510) The Old Woman

1505 Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) Young Venetian Lady

1505 Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) Portrait of a Venetian Woman

1505 Jan Provoost (1462-c 1525) Portrait of a Female Donor

1506 Lorenzo Lotto (1480-1556) Portrait of a Woman

1507 Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) Portrait of a Young Girl

1508 Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio (1483-1561) Portrait of a Woman

1509 attr Hans Holbein the Elder Katharina Schwarz

1509 Giorgione (Giorgio Barbarelli from Castelfranco 1477-1510) Portrait of a Courtesan

1510 Hans Holbein the Elder Portrait of a Woman

1510 Alessandro Araldi (1460-1530) Barbara Pallavicino

1510 Sebastiano del Piombo, Daughter of Herodias

1510 c Beatrice d'Este by Bartolomeo Veneto

1510 Sebastiano del Piombo, Portrait of a Young Girl as a Wise Virgin

1510 Vittore Carpaccio,  Portrait of a Woman

1510 Giorgione (Giorgio Barbarelli from Castelfranco 1477-1510) Two Women and a Man - The Trio

1511 Tiziano Vecellio (Titian) Portrait of a Woman Known as La Schiavona

1512 Palma il Vecchio (1580-1528)Young Woman in Green Dress



1513 Andrea del Sarto (1486-1530) Portrait of the Artist's Wife

1514 Andrea del Sarto (1486-1530) Portrait of a Lady with a Book

1514 Titian (Tiziano Vecellio)- Profane Love - Vanity

1515 Altobello Melone (1490-1543) Alda Gambara

1515 Palma Vecchio, 1515-1520 The Three Sisters

1515 Palma Vecchio, (1515-1520) Young Girl in Profile

1515 Pietro degli Ingannati,  Portrait of a Young Lady

1516 Hans Holbein the Younger (1498-1543) Dorothea Kannengiesser

1516 Jacopo Pontormo (1494-1557) Portrait of a Woman

1519 Domenico Beccafumi (1484-1551) Tanaquil

1510 Bernadino Licinio Portrait of a Lady

1515 Bernadino Licinio Portrait of a Lady

1519s Giovanni Cariani Lady Behind a Parapet

1515-20 Palma Vecchio, Lady in Green

c 1505-1520 Juan de Borgona (1470-1536) Lady with Hare

Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (Italian, 1467-1516) Portrait of a Woman

A Woman Unknown Artist c 1505

 Bartolomeo Veneto (1470-1531) Portrait of a Woman c 1503

Bernardino di Bosio Zaganelli (Early Renaissance Italian, 1460s-1510)  c 1500

German Lady Artist unknown c 1500

Giovanni Francesco Caroto (Italian High Renaissance Painter, ca.1480-1555) Isabelle d'Este c 1505-10

Girolamo di Benvenuto (Italian High Renaissance Painter, 1470-1524) Portrait of a Young Woman, c 1508

Michel Sittow (1469-1525) Catherine of Aragon

Portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga (by Shearman) aka The Boston Raphael attributed to Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (1483–1520) 

Ridolfo Ghirlandaio (Florentine painter, 1483-1561) Woman c 1509


Laura De Noyes by Giorgione, an Italian renaissance artist. Giorgione (Giorgio Barbarelli from Castelfranco 1477-1510)