IMC 2019: Sessions
Session 720: Maternal Materialities: Objects and Practices in Medieval Childbirth, I
Tuesday 2 July 2019, 14.15-15.45
| Organiser: | Costanza Gislon Dopfel, Department of Modern Languages / Department of Art History, Saint Mary's College of California |
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| Moderator/Chair: | Adrian Wilson, School of Philosophy, Religion & History of Science, University of Leeds |
| Paper 720-a | Gifting the Mother: Medieval and Early Modern Childbirth Vessels (Language: English) Index terms: Art History - General, Language and Literature - Italian, Social History, Women's Studies |
| Paper 720-b | Dietary Advice for Pregnant Women in Late Medieval Sources (Language: English) Index terms: Daily Life, Language and Literature - Spanish or Portuguese, Social History, Women's Studies |
| Paper 720-c | A Dress for the Mother (Language: English) Index terms: Archaeology - General, Daily Life, Social History, Women's Studies |
| Abstract | Although the process surrounding medieval childbirth has always been secretive, lack of written testimonials does not preclude the possibility of reconstructing this elusive space: drawing on the evidence of fashion, diet, rites and customs, the two sessions seek to give tangible form to the experience of childbirth through the analysis of physical objects and practices. The first session examines food, clothing and other items produced for the parturient mother or for the birthing room environment. Starting from an analysis of the socio-historical context, the papers proceed to decode the metaphoric value of these 'materialities' in terms of cultural meaning. |