Renaissance women at leisure
Women from wealthy Renaissance families had a range of leisure pursuits available to them, including hunting, gaming and needlecraft.
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Renaissance women's clothing
During the Renaissance period women wore long dresses, often with detachable sleeves. These sleeves were sometimes gifts from the groom to his new wife, but could also be p…
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Renaissance childbirth
To celebrate a successful birth, women were given special foods and gifts, including birth trays and amulets.
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Renaissance wedding gifts
Young brides were often given pairs of marriage chests, known as cassoni, to hold the linens and clothes they brought with them to the husband's house. Mirrors, expensive a…
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Renaissance women's jewellery
Renaissance jewellery was both decorative and functional. It could be used as security to raise loans, or given as amulets to help women conceive and deliver safely.
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Women and the Renaissance reading list
Recommended books on the subject of women in the Renaissance.
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A gift in your will
You may not have thought of including a gift to a museum in your will, but the V&A is a charity and legacies form an important source of funding for our work. It is not just the great collectors and the wealthy who leave legacies to the V&A. Legacies of all sizes, large and small, make a real difference to what we can do and your support can help ensure that future generations enjoy the V&A as much as you have.
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Italian Renaissance Maiolica
The V&A has the greatest collection of maiolica in the world. This long awaited study explores the significance of these fascinating objects in th…
Buy nowEvent - A Woman's Touch: Women Artists and Designers 1600-2000
Tue 14 January 2014 11:00
4 WEEK SHORT COURSE: Women have been making art since Antiquity, but their contribution to the principal movements of art and design is still comparatively little known. This course examines the social and historical forces that have shaped womens’ experiences and work.
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