Culture

Women in medieval culture. This image is from a miniature drawn for a manuscript of Boccaccio's De mulieribus claris, a collection of biographies of famous women, written in the late 1300s. These are modern women at work spinning and combing raw materials, and weaving the prepared fibers. The colors of their dresses attest to their keen awareness of contemporary styles. The weaver rolls up the sleeves of her dress to reveal a contrasting layer underneath.

My ethonography on Hassidic dress in Borough Park, Ethnicities About Town follows on the next page.