Gemma pretiosa della virtuose donne, page 30 (recto) 1625

This is a page from Gemma pretiosa della virtuose donne, or "The Precious Gems of Virtuous Women," printed in Venice, Italy by Isabella Catanea Parasole around 1600. It's a woodcut pattern book meant to instruct women in needlework. Here, the bold geometric patterns are exercises in reticella, a type of lace that was fashionable at the time. But, while the title associates this activity with female virtue, we might ask, what was the social role of this virtue? In the 16th and 17th centuries, upper class women's lives were confined to the home, but they played a key role in creating wealth and maintaining status through family connections. Needlework was a marketable skill that contributed to the family economy. These pattern books offer a window into the social and economic lives of women in early modern Europe. We can learn more through probate inventories, letters, and account books to gain a better understanding. Art's meaning is always contingent on social context.