From January through May 2004, the Picturing Women project will exhibit historical and contemporary representations of women.
Lively programs and special exhibits investigate the social, cultural, and political aspects of images of women which span four centuries.
Three historical artifacts in the exhibition are on loan from The Archives and Special Collections at Thomas Jefferson University to one of the three exhibition sites, Bryn Mawr College Library.
One of the artifacts appearing at Bryn Mawr is Jefferson’s little anatomical manikin. This delicately carved 17th or 18th century ivory figure was probably used as a pedagogical tool to instruct women and mid-wives. In early modern Europe, textbooks illustrating women’s health and pregnancy were rare and costly. But a little doll, made locally by an artisan, could not only demonstrate the essential anatomical structures, but possibly also prompt a discussion of birth control and other topics for the home-bound woman patient.
Visit the exhibition at:
Bryn Mawr College
Library Company of Philadelphia
Rosenbach Museum & Library
For exhibition locations and programming details, visit the interactive Picturing Women website.
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