Premodern History and Art Through the Prism of Gender in East-Central Europe

Abstract

Premodern History and Art through the Prism of Gender in East-Central Europe is a representative collection of current Czech research in premodern history and art history, using gender as a tool of analysis. The common denominators of the texts collected in this volume are the art history of the premodern period, gender perspectives, and, to a certain degree, the Czech milieu. The book is divided into four parts, based on area of interest, time frame, and research perspective. The first part sheds light on the state of research in the field of women's history—along with the implementation of the concept of gender—and highlights a certain paradigmatic conservatism of Czech art historiography. The second gathers contributions that analyze visual sources of Czech origin. The third includes texts that analyze gender issues on the level of literary representation. The final part presents two case studies that involve analysis of the premodern West European source base. Rywiková and Malaníková present this volume as an innovative way to introduce this specific segment of Central European art history to a broader audience in global academia.