Historic Women Daily

A blog dedicated to the lovely (and not so lovely) women of history and the content created of them.

[historicwomendaily]

Hi, for all of our followers, who are also Twitter users, we made a Twitter version of historicwomendaily! Please check it out.

The latest Tweets from Historic Women Daily (@historicwomens). Dedicated to the lovely (and not so lovely) women of history and the content

[city-of-ladies]

"Although she may not have survived quite into the Augustan period, Aba of Olbe (or Olba), active at least into the late 30s BC, provides a fine example of an obscure (to modern readers) ruling woman of the era. She is known only from a single passage in the Geography of Strabo, who was particularly well informed on the political situation in Asia Minor during the first century BC. The scant surviving information provides an insight into the politics of the region in the years just before Augustus came to power.

Olbe lies in the district known in antiquity as Rough Cilicia, so named for its rugged topography, essentially the south central part of modern Turkey. The site is only fifteen miles inland but lies at more than 3,000 feet elevation and was an ancient shrine of Zeus Olbios, with a town just to its west. The locals believed that the cult had been founded by Aias, the son of the Trojan War hero Teukros, and thus the sanctuary was thought to have had its origins in the dispersal of peoples after the war. The shrine and the region around it had become a prominent temple state by the fourth century BC, with its priest-kings taking royal privileges and ruling an extensive territory, one of several such entities in central Anatolia. (...)

The younger Zenophanes does not seem to have been priest-king himself, but his daughter, Aba, married into the priestly family. The name of her husband, presumably the priest-king, is not known. When he died, she succeeded to the rule, but her position was precarious and she eventually sought help from both Cleopatra VII and Antonius; there is a sense of desperation in her request (Strabo referred to “earnest pleas”). This would have been sometime between when the couple met at Tarsos in 41 BC and when they died, eleven years later. The Ptolemies had long-standing interests in Cilicia, including the region of Olbe, and under his triumviral authority Antonius had regularly restored parts of this territory to Cleopatra’s control: as early as 38 BC she had a military governor of Cilicia and Cyprus in office. Aba’s position was thus confirmed by both the Ptolemies and the Romans.

How long she remained in power is not recorded. Eventually she was overthrown, presumably in favor of her son, since her family continued to control the priesthood; one can only assume that she fell victim to the usual opposition to a woman ruler. There is no indication that she had any contact with Augustus, so she may have been removed due to an internal revolt before 30 BC, when Augustus (still Octavian) came to full power. 

Although her life is scantily documented, Aba is unique in the history of the later first century BC. She was a dependent ruler within the expanding empire of Cleopatra VII, much like the allied monarchs of the Roman world, and her career demonstrated the wide reach of Cleopatra’s power at its peak. Moreover, she ruled for several years as priestess-queen of Olbe, an office not recorded elsewhere. The official title of the priest-king was Archiereus (High Priest), preserved on the repair inscription of Seleukos I, and presumably she took this as her own, perhaps in the feminine form, Archiereia. But like so many women of power, her position and status were a threat, and she was deposed, probably when her Ptolemaic and Roman patrons were themselves eliminated. Yet she provides a momentary glimpse into a little-known world that existed just before the Augustan period."

From: Cleopatra’s Daughter and Other Royal Women of the Augustan Era, Duane W. Roller

[city-of-ladies]

Chen Shuozhen (d. 653) was the first woman to proclaim herself Emperor of China, decades before Wu Zetian. A charismatic leader, she led a major peasant uprising.

Ringing bells and marching to war

The reign of Emperor Taizong was marked by large-scale construction projects and rising public expenditure. These policies contributed to declining prosperity and growing unrest among non-Han communities. His successor, Emperor Gaozong, proved a weaker administrator, and continuing border wars brought further hardship to the population.

It was in these circumstances that Chen Shuozhen gathered a large following. Her origins remain unknown. She may have come from a religious or sectarian background, as many female rebel leaders did. Later sources accused her of heresy and of deceiving the people. Her ability to organize and command an armed uprising also suggests that she may have belonged to a military family.

The Civil and Excellent Emperor

As she marched to war, Chen Shuozhen rang bells and burned incense. She proclaimed herself Emperor Wenjia, adopting the title of "Civil and Excellent Emperor," and appointed her brother-in-law as prime minister. This is significant, as it clearly demonstrates that she herself was the leader of the rebellion.

Whether Chen Shuozhen personally fought in battle remains unknown. She nevertheless proved to be a capable commander, capturing Tonglu, Muzhou, and Yuqian in rapid succession. Government troops were reluctant to confront her because she was believed to possess magical powers and had defeated every force sent against her.

Her advance came to an end when the prefect of Wuzhou organized a large army to resist her. Outnumbered, Chen Shuozhen's forces were defeated, and both she and her brother-in-law were killed. Her rebellion had lasted less than two months.

Legacy of a rebel

Although short-lived, Chen Shuozhen's career remains historically significant. She was the first known Chinese woman to proclaim herself Emperor, and she succeeded in attracting a remarkably large following in a very short period, an extraordinary achievement for a woman of her social standing.

The fact that she claimed the imperial title herself suggests that attitudes toward female leadership were more fluid than is often assumed. In 681, while the future Wu Zetian was still empress consort, another woman, Liu Ningjing, arrived at the imperial Astrological Service. Dressed in white and riding a white horse, she was accompanied by eighty-nine male followers. She correctly predicted the appearance of a comet that remained visible for seventeen days.

Although little else is known about Liu Ningjing, she provides another example of a woman exercising authority over men.

Chen Shuozhen later became an inspiration for subsequent rebellions. Her memory survives in the folklore of her native Zhejiang, where a statue commemorates her. This places her among some of China's greatest female rebel leaders, including Mother Lü, Tang Sai'er, and Hong Xuanjiao.

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Further reading: 

Hughes April D., Worldly Saviors and Imperial Authority in Medieval Chinese Buddhism

Lily Xiao Hong Lee, “Chen Shuozhen”, in: Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Women, Volume II Tang Through Ming 618 - 1644

[city-of-ladies]

"Miss Liao and Miss Lian led separate peasant rebellions against the Ming government.

Miss Liao (Liao shi), d. 1449, of Ouning District (in present-day Jian’ou in Fujian Province), was involved in peasant uprisings in the mid-Ming dynasty and was known as “the female general” (nü jiangjun) because of her bravery. Her husband, Deng Bosun, was a nephew of Deng Maoqi, who led an insurrectionary army, and she joined in their uprising in 1448, distinguishing herself in several battles. The following year her husband assumed leadership of the army after Deng Maoqi was killed in battle, and he continued to resist Ming forces. Their uprising was quashed in late 1449, and Miss Liao returned to her native place, but she was captured by Ming soldiers in Shaowu, also in Fujian, and put to death.

Miss Lian (Lian shi), fl. mid-sixteenth century, of Wenshang (in present-day Shandong Province), worked with her husband, Tian Bing, and the monk Huijin to mobilize peasants in conjunction with the White Lotus society (bailian jiao), and in 1546 they fought a series of battles in the Shandong region. Their uprising was eventually quashed by the Ming general Shi Zhanhan, and Miss Lian and her husband were captured. It is presumed that they were executed. The governor of Shandong, He Ao, was imprisoned for allowing the uprising to run its course and not putting it down as soon as it began."

From: Lin Yanqing, "Liao and Lian", in: Biographical dictionary of Chinese women, Tang through Ming

[city-of-ladies]

Ancient DNA analysis reveals Wiltshire’s Upton Lovell Shaman was a woman

Exclusive: Analysis offers ‘smoking gun evidence’ that overturns previous assumption that bronze age individual was male

"The Upton Lovell Shaman, a bronze age individual who has been depicted in museum exhibits as a bearded spiritual leader and metalworker, was female, an ancient DNA analysis has revealed.

The 4,000-year-old skeleton, along with the extensive collection of stone axes, metalworking tools and the remains of an elaborate ceremonial cloak found in the grave, is viewed as among the most significant bronze age burials in Britain.

The artefacts date to about 1,800BC, a time when the ability of metalworkers to transform lumps of rock into molten metal would have given them a special – possibly even spiritual – position in society. Such roles, many had assumed, would have been reserved for men, but this narrative has been turned on its head by the latest analysis."

[hellenicgoddess]

Detail of the “Saffron Gatherers” 3,675-year-old fresco from Akrotiri, the Bronze Age city of Santorini entombed by volcanic ash.

© Museum of Prehistoric Thera, Santorini, Greece

[artifacts-and-arthropods]

The World's Oldest Known Saddle, from China, c.727-396 BCE: this saddle was created more than 2,400 years ago, and it belonged to a woman in the Tian Shan mountains of China

This saddle was discovered at a site known as Yanghai, which is located along the eastern edge of the Turpan Basin in what is now China. Radiocarbon dating indicates that it was created between 727-396 BCE, making it the oldest horseback riding saddle ever discovered.

As this article explains:

Preserved by the region’s arid climate, the Yanghai saddle offers rich insights into early horse-riding technology and the society that created it. Its two wing-shaped hides, filled with a mixture of straw, deer hair, and camel hair, were sewn together along the outer edges and separated by a section without stuffing (known as the gullet), which eased the pressure on the horse’s spine.

The Yanghai saddle also shakes assumptions that horse-riding saddles were used solely by men for military purposes. “The discovery of this saddle inside the tomb of a woman suggests that women participated in the everyday activities of mounted pastoralists, which included herding and traveling,” says Patrick Wertmann of the University of Zurich.

Above: close-ups of the leather stitching and wear patterns along the edges of the saddle

Researchers argue that the saddle was likely crafted by a skilled specialist, and that it served a functional purpose:

Unlike the younger finds from elite Scythian burials, this early saddle was made from inexpensive materials and used by a common woman. Yet it is testimony to the same mastery of craftsmanship. Both the functional design considering the anatomy and well-being of horse and rider, and the fine execution of the crafting techniques, i.e. leather- and needlework, demonstrate that the Yanghai saddle was manufactured by a specialist familiar with leatherwork, horse husbandry, and riding.

The lack of elaborate decorative applications together with traces of wear and repair spots, some of which were executed in a simpler and cruder way, imply that the saddle was an every-day item maintained by the user.

The saddle is attributed to the Subeixi Culture, which flourished in northwestern China from roughly 1100 BCE to 100 CE.

Sources & More Info:

Archaeological Research in Asia: The Earliest Directly Dated Saddle for Horse-Riding from a Mid-1st Millennium BCE Female Burial in Northwest China

National Geographic: Is this the World's Oldest Saddle?

Science News: The Oldest Known Horseback Riding Saddle was Found in a Grave in China

[visions-of-our-past]

"In this illustration I have represented an Iberian Neolithic woman with three Aurochs specimens. The remains of these animals and the woman were found together, which could indicate a certain domestication of this species several centuries before what was estimated until now."

-José Antonio

Source

[city-of-ladies]

Stone Age women were buried with as many tools as men

Prehistoric graves show women wielded more than early archeologists gave them credit for.

"Some 6,000 years ago in the northern reaches of modern Latvia, a young woman died. Afterwards, a group of early humans buried her in an ancient, sacred place along a lakeshore. They carefully lowered her small teenage frame into the ground, gently placing a stone ax, 28 flint flakes, 15 blades, and a stone scraper beside her. Stained with ochre, the stone implements were part of her last rites. This young woman remained there thousands of years, until, when archaeologists discovered her along with more than 300 others in the 20th century. The site, known as Zvejnieki cemetery, is one of Europe’s largest Stone Age cemeteries.

Research conducted at Zvejnieki has often challenged longheld assumptions about gender roles in prehistoric Europe. For instance, the young woman interred in burial 211 described above is one of several women and children buried with stone axes at the site, upending the notion that axes only belonged to Stone Age men. Now, a new study published September 10 in the journal PLOS One again upends gender stereotypes, demonstrating that women and children were just as likely to be buried with stone tools as men. The woman in burial 211 alone was laid to rest with a staggering 45 different stone objects. 

(...)

This flies in the face of a decades-old stereotype that Stone Age women didn’t use stone tools as frequently as men. The women were too busy cooking, crafting, and caring for the family to bother with the stone tools used by men in hunting and building. Or so the outdated story went.

“Our findings overturn the old stereotype of ‘Man the Hunter,’”  Little said in a statement. Historically, this stereotype “has been a dominant theme in Stone Age studies, and has even influenced, on occasion, how some infants have even been sexed, on the basis that they were given lithic tools.”

Study co-author Dr. Anđa Petrović of the University of Belgrade echoes Little: “This research demonstrates that we cannot make these gendered assumptions and that lithic grave goods played an important role in the mourning rituals of children and women, as well as men.”"

[inziladun]

John Duncan - Ladies of the Minoan Court

[periellados]

Women of the Bronze Age

Akrotiri, Thera, Greece

[city-of-ladies]

During her time as Empress Consort of Japan, Tachibana no Kachiko (786–850) promoted education and culture while emerging as an important political figure. She is also known as Empress Danrin.

The divine poet

Kachiko's father died when she was only three years old, leaving her without his support as she grew up. She nevertheless possessed two remarkable advantages.

The first was her extraordinary beauty. A contemporary account offers a striking description of her:

“The queen had a sympathetic, warm heart, along with peerless beauty. Her hands reached below her knees; her hair flowed down to the very ground. All gazed upon her with wonder.”

Hands extending below the knees were also regarded as one of the physical characteristics of a fully enlightened Buddha. Combined with her kindness and dignity, this gave Kachiko a divine aura. She was later associated with Buddhist deities.

Her second great asset was her exceptional literary talent. She excelled in both vernacular and Chinese poetry.

According to legend, a nun predicted when Kachiko was still a girl that she would one day become empress. Whether or not the story is true, Kachiko indeed became a powerful woman.

From consort to empress

Kachiko attracted the attention of Emperor Saga, who chose her as one of his consorts. The match offered little political advantage, as she did not belong to the influential Fujiwara clan, which dominated imperial politics. His decision was probably inspired instead by her beauty, literary talent, and devotion to Buddhism, interests that the emperor himself shared.

As a junior consort, Kachiko had to contend with the jealousy of her rivals. In one of her poems, she asks the emperor to visit her only after nightfall to avoid attracting gossip:

Gossip spreads like wildfire! Wait there, I beg you, at my curtain but a little while longer. Do not rush in just yet. The dew is bound to fall come nightfall, and when it does, I shall come out to wipe it off the grass.

Despite these challenges, Kachiko steadily rose in rank and was elevated to Empress Consort in 815.

Patron of religion and culture

Kachiko was a devoted patron of Buddhism. She commissioned and crafted religious objects, including banners and stoles, which she donated to temples.

Her greatest achievement was the foundation of Danrin-ji, from which she earned the title of Empress Danrin. In 847, she sent envoys to China to invite a monk to serve at the temple. Danrin-ji thus became the first temple in Japan to teach the doctrines of Zen Buddhism.

Although Danrin-ji was destroyed by fire in 928, a new nunnery was established on the site in 1321.

Kachiko also founded a private academy, the Gakukan'in, where Chinese classics were taught to members of her family and their descendants.

Political manoeuvres

Kachiko's daughter, Empress Seishi, became the consort of Emperor Junna. Like her mother, Seishi was a devoted Buddhist and was especially known for caring for children and orphans.

Following the death of the retired Emperor Saga in 842, a succession crisis broke out. Aligning herself with the Fujiwara clan, Kachiko deposed Seishi's son, Crown Prince Tsunesada. In his place, she promoted the future Emperor Montoku, whose mother belonged to the Fujiwara family. In doing so, she strengthened both the paternal line of succession and Fujiwara influence at court.

The following imperial decree stated that the decision was made in accordance with "the words of the senior grand imperial dowager". This episode illustrates the authority Kachiko exercised over the imperial household with the support of the aristocracy. Her daughter was devastated by the decision and came to resent her mother deeply.

Kachiko remained the most powerful woman at court until the end of her life. Two months before her death, she retired to Danrin-ji, where she became a Buddhist nun and devoted herself to meditation. Even so, it is clear that she had no desire to withdraw from public life until her final days.

If you enjoy this blog, consider supporting me on Ko-fi!

Further reading: 

Dictionnaire historique du Japon

Fukuto Sanae and Watanabe Takeshi, “From female sovereign to mother of the nation, women and government in the Heian period”, in: Heian Japan, Centers and Peripheries

Groner Paul, Ryōgen and Mount Hiei: Japanese Tendai in the Tenth Century

Reeves Kristopher, “Saga woos the court: Vernacular Poetry, Powerful women and Romantic Verses”

[city-of-ladies]

"(In 1461) The sultan left Sinop and marched in rainy weather, not along the coast but inland over the military highway leading to Erzurum by way of Amasya and Sivas. Apparently he wished to give the impression that he was headed not for Trebizond but for the territory of Uzun Hasan. East of Tokat, two days’ march from Sivas on the road to Erzurum, lies the mountain castle of Koylu Hisar (or Koyunlu Hisar; now Koyul Hisar), which Uzun Hasan had wrested from one Hiiseyin, its former owner, and established as a border fortress to protect his territories against invasion from Anatolia. The sultan commissioned Sarabdar Hasan Bey, governor of Little Rum, that is, the region of Amasya and Sivas, to take the castle or at least to lay waste the surrounding country. Both tasks were carried out and the sultan marched on eastward toward Erzincan.

On his way he was met by Sara Hatun, Uzun Hasan’s mother, probably an Aramaic Christian from the region of Diyarbakir, accompanied by Sheikh Hiiseyin, bey of the Kurds, and numerous Turkmen princes. She had been sent with rich gifts to negotiate a peaceable compromise in her son’s name. Mehmed received the princess and the sheikh with special honors, addressed the one as “mother,” the other as “father,” and through them concluded a peace with Uzun Hasan, who was required to promise that he would give the Comneni no further assistance.

Then, accompanied by Sara and Hiiseyin, he headed for Trebizond across the precipitous coastal mountains. Mehmed was obliged to climb the heights of Zigana largely on foot. “My son,” said Sara to the sultan, “how can you undergo such hardships just for the sake of Trebizond?” “Mother,” he was reported to have answered, “in my hand is the sword of Islam. Without this hardship I should not deserve the name of ghazi [warrior of the faith], and today and tomorrow I should have to cover my face in shame before Allah!” Sara Hatun’s efforts to include the emperor of Trebizond in the peace treaty of Erzincan were no more successful than her wily attempt to discourage the sultan from marching against David by describing the dangers ahead—impassable mountains, impenetrable wooded ravines, and lack of supplies. David’s doom was sealed."

From: Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time, Franz Babinger

[city-of-ladies]

The most celebrated female poet of Ancient Greece after Sappho, Erinna (fl. c. 350 BCE) left behind only a small body of work. Yet her surviving verses offer a rare glimpse into the emotions and experiences of a young woman in the ancient world.

Inspired by the Muses

Little is known about Erinna apart from what she reveals in her poem The Distaff. At the time she wrote it, she was nineteen years old, unmarried, and mourning her friend Baucis, who had died shortly after her wedding.

One scholar once suggested that Erinna never existed and that The Distaff had instead been written by a man impersonating an uneducated young woman. Today, this hypothesis has been largely rejected. Women did have access to education, particularly in the region of Teos, one of Erinna's possible birthplaces. Moreover, although literary forgeries certainly existed, a male author would have had little to gain from attributing his work to an otherwise unknown woman.

One notable feature of Erinna's poetry is her use of the Doric dialect, something uncommon in literary poetry. This choice makes the emotions expressed in her verses more poignant and intimate.

Although most of her writings have been lost, Erinna's poetry circulated widely throughout the ancient world. Poets and anthologists praised her work, comparing her to the greatest authors of antiquity. Meleager included her in his Garland of poets, likening her poetry to a sweet, maiden colored crocus.

Erinna's voice still echoes today. Mangaka Satou Futaba made her the heroine of the manga Utae! Erinna (Sing! Erinna), portraying her as a young woman determined to rival the greatest poets of her age.

The Distaff

Erinna's best-known work is The Distaff. Only about fifty-four lines of the original three hundred survive, preserved on a badly damaged papyrus. In this poem, Erinna mourns the death of her friend Baucis. The text offers a rare window into the life of a young woman through timeless themes of grief, friendship, family, and domestic life.

She recalls the games she played with Baucis as a child and remembers being frightened by the monster Morpho. Looking back on those memories with tenderness, she draws a parallel between marriage and death. Throughout the poem, Erinna skillfully develops the image of weaving. Weaving was not only a traditional female occupation but also a metaphor for poetry, while simultaneously evoking the thread of life spun by the Fates.

In addition to The Distaff, three epigrams are attributed to Erinna. All are dedicated to female friends: two to Baucis and one to a woman named Agatharchis.

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Further reading: 

Karanika Andromache, Wedding, Gender, and Performance in Ancient Greece

Natoli Bartolo, Pitts Angela, Hallett Judith P. (eds.), Ancient Women Writers of Greece and Rome

Plant Ian Michael (ed.), Women Writers of Ancient Greece and Rome : An Anthology

Read Erinna's poetry below:

The Distaff:

……………………………………………. girls

……………………………………………. brides

……………………………………………. tortoise

……………………………………………. moon

……………………………………………. tortoise

………………………………………………….

………………………………………………….

                 with leaves

………………………………………………….

……………………………………………. to card [wool]

……………………………………………. wave

from white horses (you leapt?) with maddened feet

“Aiai,”I shouted loudly, and you then turned into a tortoise

…………………….little yard of a great courtyard;

and, because of these things, poor Baucis, I weep for you, sighing heavily,

these childhood games lie in my heart……….

still warm; but, those (which we once?) used to play are now charcoal,

and (dances of?) dolls and girl-hood friends, brides

in the bedroom………………………towards dawn

mother……………………. wool-workers

them……………………around….sprinkled with salt;

and (with?) little (haste?) …Morpho brought (such great) fear;

… on (her head? were great big) ears, and she stalked about on four

feet, and she shape-shifted from (one) form into (another).

But when (you went into your husband’s bed?), you forgot everything

that belonged to childhood, and then, you heard (my?) mother,

dear Baucis; forgetfulness……….Aphrodite

weeping for you, ………the other things I leave behind;

For, my feet ………….are not permitted (to go?) from the house,

nor (am I able?) to gaze upon your dead body (with my eyes?), nor to lament

with women who have unbound their hair…. blood-red shame

tears at both sides of my cheeks……………….

in earlier times………………………

nineteenth…………………………….

Erinna…………….dear……………………

looking upon the distaff…………………….

know that………………………….

coiled around (Gello?) ………………………….

about these things, shame…. me…………….

with maidens…………….

looking………………….

unbound hair……………….

gentle-speaking grey hairs, the blooms of old age for mortals.

………….dear…………….

Baucis…….weep………….

flame……….her……………

hearing a howling………………….

o Hymenaius……………

many things…………………

……….o Hymenaius…………….

Aiai, poor Baucis………………………

First epigram for Baucis:

My stele and Sirens and mourning urn,

you who hold the little ash belonging to Hades,

say hello to those who go past my tomb,

whether they are my fellow citizens or visitors from other cities;

and say that a tomb holds me, a bride; and, say this, too—

that my father called me Baucis, and my family

is from Tenos, so that they may know, and say also that my friend

Erinna on my tomb wrote this inscription.

Baucis 2:

I am the stele of the bride Baucis. As you pass by this mournful

monument, tell this to Hades beneath the earth:

“you are malicious, Hades.” These words are beautiful to the on-looker,

who reads aloud Baucis’s cruelest fate—

how Hymen sang about the girl among the wedding torches

with which her father-in-law lit the flames of her funeral pyre.

But, you, Hymen, change the mode of your melodious wedding-hymn

into a mournful voice of dirges.

For Agatharchis:

Delicate hands made this portrait; superior Prometheus,

there are humans who rival even your skill.

If only whoever painted this girl so accurately

had also endowed her with a human voice—Agatharchis would be complete.

[city-of-ladies]

"In cuneiform, the word ‘midwife’ is written with three logographic signs – or signs that stand for whole words – meaning ‘woman’, ‘inside’ or ‘womb’, and ‘to know’. Midwives, in other words, were women who knew the inside. Their role had both medical and mythological import. Clay tablets that record medical instructions often feature midwives, like one reddish tablet unearthed from an ancient library in Assur written down in the early first millennium BCE. A lengthy collection of prescriptions for a challenging birth combines spells and medicine. It reads like an instruction manual, explaining how to mix and apply salves and oils, and how to massage the pregnant woman’s abdomen to help move labour along. (...)

Women didn’t just treat illnesses and processes specific to other women; they also served as ancient GPs. Some of the earliest records of female physicians appear in clay tablets from the third millennium BCE, including even their names. Dubildamu may not have used a stethoscope 4,500 years ago, but she is listed in an accounting tablet as an azu munus, which in Sumerian means ‘female physician’. A few centuries later, a woman called Ubartum also carried her proverbial medical bag to visit so many patients that her name appears in no fewer than fifty documents. (Incidentally, Ubartum’s brother was also a physician who was married to a princess, the daughter of King Shulgi.) Women continued to work as physicians throughout the region’s long history, and they may have even composed and used medical texts, including one clay tablet written in the early second millennium BCE to assist with childbirth."

Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History, Moudhy Al-Rashid

[city-of-ladies]

Chang Kyehyang (1598–1680), also known as Jang Gye-hyang, was a poet, painter, and philanthropist. She was the first woman to write a cookbook in the history of East Asia.

The young poet

Chang Kyehyang was the daughter of a scholar. At the age of nine, she astonished her father by writing her first poem, Ode to the Saint, in which she lamented that she could not meet the great scholars of the past while expressing gratitude for being able to study their works.

She went on to write other poems, exploring themes such as nature and mourning. Chang Kyehyang was also a talented calligrapher and painter, notably producing a painting of a tiger. Her father later arranged her marriage to his most accomplished student, Yi Si-myeong, a widower whose first wife had died at a young age.

Philanthropist

Chang Kyehyang raised seven sons and devoted great care to their education. One of them later became a minister at the royal court. She also raised and educated the son and daughter her husband had from his first marriage.

A generous philanthropist, Chang Kyehyang sought to provide alternative food sources for the poor and the starving people of her region. She also protected her community during times of war and strife.

She explained her actions with these words:

“It is the order of the universe to live together; the highest order of moral law is sharing his or her own wealth with less fortunate people.”

Recipes for Tasty Food

In 1670, Chang Kyehyang wrote Ŭmsik timibang  (Recipes for Tasty Food), the first cookbook written by a woman in the history of East Asia and the first cookbook written in Hangul, the Korean alphabet. Although women from prominent families had undoubtedly developed and passed down recipes orally for generations, hers was the first known work of its kind to be written down.

Unlike Classical Chinese, which was primarily used by government officials and educated men, Hangul offered women new opportunities for literary expression. They developed a rich literary culture of their own, producing novels, poetry, memoirs, and works devoted to domestic life.

The cookbook was probably intended at first for the younger women of her family. Chang Kyehyang wished to preserve the culinary traditions of her region. As a result, Ŭmsik timibang contains a wealth of information on the preparation of soju, along with a wide variety of dishes and cooking techniques.

Chang Kyehyang's purpose is best captured in the preface to her book:

“All men and women eat and drink, but few know the true meaning of taste.”

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Further reading: 

Kaff Lucy, “How Women in Chosŏn Korea Legitimized Han'gul”

Park Hyunhee, Soju: A Global History

Yearn-hong Choi, “Jang Gye-hyang - Joseon's poetess, first cookbook author and philanthropist”

[city-of-ladies]

Beautiful woman in plain lines, Xue Susu, 1598

"A gifted courtesan in an age of talented women, Xue Susu, ca. 1564 ca. 1637, (that is, Xue Wu; her sobriquets include Xuesu, Sujun, Runqing, Qiaoqiao, Wulang, and Runniang) was classed as one of the Eight Famous Courtesans of the Ming. She was known for her paintings of orchids and bamboo, for her poetry, and for her skill at shooting with bow and arrow from horseback; she called herself a "female knight-errant." Sources disagree on the place of Xue's birth, and record it as Suzhou in Jiangsu province or Jiaxing in Zhejiang province. Active in the pleasure quarters along the Qinhuai River in Nanjing, Xue Susu met and befriended many distinguished men of letters.

Dong Qichang (1555-1636), the foremost painter and theorist of painting of the day, held her work in high esteem, writing:

"As for [painting] landscapes, orchids, and bamboo, she lowers her brush swiftly, sweepingly. None [of her paintings] lacks an intention and spirit that approaches the divine."

 Hu Yinglin (1543-1581) added: "What famous painter with skilled hands can surpass her?" The judgment of Dong and Hu is echoed by their contemporary Fan Yunlin (1558-1641) in a colophon attached to her "Flowers," a painting of 1615:

''Later generations have not seen many women who paint as well as Madame Guan . . . . I obtained from a friend an ink-orchid fan by her [Xue Susu]. It was like having obtained a precious jade: to this day I store it away as a treasure."

Orchid, Bamboo, Pine and Plum / Butterflies and Flowers/ Girl playing flute (self-portrait)

Xue Susu's paintings were enhanced by her poetry, also highly regarded. Hu Yinglin in his Jiayi shengyan wrote of her literary accomplishments: "Susu was interested in Buddhism which she studied with Yu Xianzhang. She was fond of poetry which she learned from Wang Xingfu. Her poetry, although lacking in freedom, shows a talent rare among women."

In the economy of social exchange between courtesan and patron, Xue Susu's talents in painting and poetry served her well. She produced paintings and poems for her lovers as tokens of their shared affection. In return she received the poetic attentions of her lovers and admirers, who included some of the most prominent writers of her day the dramatist Shen Defu (1578-1642) and the painter and author Li Rihua (1565-1635), among others.

Her liaisons with and social connections to leading literati placed Xue Susu at the center of late Ming cultural life. Yet Xue, unlike many courtesans, did not accept the prolonged tutelage of a single man and never formed a lasting bond with any of her lovers. She married several times during her life and was left alone in her last years."

Her poetry:

Painting orchids

In the empty valley a lady of surpassing beauty;

Blue silken gauze for a belt, and jade for flesh.

Except, alas, that it gets mingled with the weeds;

Its secluded fragrance rare, but unnoticed.

Written as a Gift When Passing Cai's "Shadowy Cloud" Tower

Leaning idly against a tall tower, lingering a little;

 Irises before the window delicately exhale fragrance.

 Milky light from a hidden table reflects on the bare wall;

 Mountain air rests on books, dampens the couch.

 I have heard of nights lit gray by bramble fires,

 I like the coolness of jade trees the wind produces:

In its midst one finds competent poets,

But who is as talented as Master Cai?

From: Xue's Susu biographical note and translation of her poems by Jennifer Purtle, in: Women writers of traditional China: an anthology of poetry and criticism