1st Edition
Women and War Stories from the Amazons to the Greatest Generation through Art and Artifacts
This volume explores how art and artifacts can tell women’s stories of war, a critical way into these stories, often hidden due to the second-tier status of reporting women’s accomplishments. This unique lens reveals personal, cultural, and historically noteworthy experiences often not found in records, manuscripts, and texts.
Nine stories from history are examined, from the mythical Amazons of Ancient Greece to a female prisoner of war during World War II. Each of the social, political, and battlefield experiences of Penthesilea, Artemisia, Boudica, the feminine cavaliers, the Dahomey Amazons, suffragists, World War I medical corps, and a World War II prisoner of war are intertwined with a particular work of art or an artifact. These include pottery, iconographic images, public sculpture, stone engraving, clothing, decorative arts, paintings, and pulp art. Whilst each story stands alone, brought together in this volume they represent a cross sectional reflection on the record of women and war. The chapters cover not only a diverse range of women from around the globe - the African continent, the Hispanic territory of Europe, Carian and Ancient Greece and Rome, Iran, Great Britain-Scotland-ancient Caledonia, Western Europe, and North America – but also a diversity choice of artwork and artifact, eras, and the nature of the wars being fought.
This book will be of value to those interested in gender across history and it’s interplay in the field of war.
1. Storytelling with Ceramics Penthesilea, Queen of the Amazons
2. Anachronism and Iconography as Artifact: Artemisia I of Persia, Admiral & Queen of the Anatolian Region of Caria
3. Stylized Public Sculpture: Boudica Queen of the British Celtic Iceni Tribe
4. Stone Engraving Order of the Hatchet: The Feminine Cavaliers of the Torch in Tortosa
5. Uniforms as Artifacts: The Dahomey Warriors of West Africa
6. Decorative Arts Medals as Artifacts Suffragism: The Women’s Civil War1840-1921
7. Portraiture as a Historical Record: Mable Annie St Clair Stobart and the Serbian Women’s Sick and Wounded Convoy Corps
8. Painting as Social Commentary: Drs Flora Murray and Louisa Garrett Anderson & the Endell Street Hospital
9. Pulp Art: Prisoner of War, Chief Navy Nurse, Marion Olds
Biography
Dr Mary Raum is a tenured professor of national security affairs at the United States Naval War College, where she created and has been teaching the history of women in war and combat courses for fifteen years. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in art history from Cambridge University, holds several art history certifications, and has a dual Ph.D. in Engineering and Public Affairs. Dr. Raum was the legacy Swanee Hunt Academic Chair for Women Peace and Security and served in that role for a decade.
