Illumination from the manuscript "Livre de la chasse - Déduits de la chasse", ms. Français 616, c. 67r, 14th or 15th century, Département des manuscrits, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris. Folia Magazine is off to a summer vacation! Our…
Our journey to the discovery of the many Mulieres Clarae continues with a multi-faceted goddess, Minerva. Robinet Testard, as shown in the illumination above, chose to depict her warrior side by arming her with sword…
Today, just like every Wednesday, Folia Magazine welcomes a new Mulier Clara: the spotlight this week goes to Ceres, the goddess of agricultural fertility. In accordance to her patronage, the deity is often depicted holding…
This week’s Women’s Wednesday features a new Mulier Clara: Juno, queen of the Greek gods and patron of marriage and childbirth. The illuminator Robinet Testard, as seen above, depicts the goddess with bare womb and…
July 6, 1415: Jan Hus, the Czech theologian now considered to be one of the main predecessors of the Reformation and Protestantism, is burned at the stake. The 15th-century Catholic Church was living a time of great struggle, following…
Our third Women's Wednesday is dedicated to Opis, Saturn's wife, earth goddess and personification of abundance. The Latin word "ops", in fact, literally means "riches, plenty"; at the same time, "opis" signifies "work", especially in…
"Scheint am Siebenschläfer Sonne, gibt es sieben Wochen Wonne." German-speaking countries celebrated yesterday Siebenschläfertag, the "Day of the Seven Sleepers": according to lore, the weather on this day is said to predict the weather on the following seven weeks. But…
Let’s continue our adventure through the pages of the De Mulieribus Claris: today's guest is Semiramis, the legendary queen of Assyria. The illumination above depicts Semiramis in the company of a white dog, perhaps to symbolize…