Collins Memorial Library: History 305: Women & Gender in Premodern Europe: Getting Started

The resources listed on this "Getting Started" tab should help you establish some basic context for the object that you will be researching for the "Life of an Object" assignment. The bibliographies found at the end of entries should be especially helpful. However, you then will want to proceed to the "Scholarly Books & Articles" page to use more specialized resources.

Women & Gender subject encyclopedias

These subject encyclopedias look specifically at women and gender in the premodern period.

Women and Gender in Medieval Europe by Margaret C. Schaus (Editor)
Call Number: HQ1147.E85 W66 2006 Print reference (first floor)

Publication Date: 2006

A cross-disciplinary resource, this encyclopedia examines the daily reality of medieval women from all walks of life in Europe between 450 CE and 1500 CE.
Women in the Middle Ages: An Encyclopedia by Katharina M. Wilson (Editor); Nadia Margolis (Editor)
Call Number: HQ1143 .W643 2004 v.1-2, Print reference

ISBN: 9780313330162

Publication Date: 2004

This encyclopedia offers coverage of the myriad roles, experiences, and contributions of women in the medieval world.

Digital Collections of Reference Books

Each of these collections includes hundreds of individual titles.

Gale eBooks
Provides full text online access to Gale electronic books, including encyclopedias and other reference resources.
Oxford Reference
Contains the complete texts of many Oxford companions, encyclopedias, dictionaries and other reference titles in a fully indexed, cross-searchable database. Included in addition to articles are images, maps, timelines, bibliographies, photographs and much more.
Bloomsbury Collections
This eBook Collection contains encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, and guides from Bloomsbury, ABC-CLIO, Greenwood Press, Libraries Unlimited, and Praeger.

Material Culture Subject Encyclopedias & Handbooks

The following subject encyclopedias and handbooks offer expanded perspectives on various aspects of medieval material culture.

Arts and Humanities through the Eras by Edward Bleiberg
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access.

Publication Date: 2005

Covers the major branches of the humanities: architecture and design, dance, fashion, literature, music, philosophy, religion, theater and visual arts. Chapters end with significant primary documents from the period.
Volume 3: Medieval Europe (814-1450)
Volume 4: Renaissance Europe (1300-1600)
The Grove Encyclopedia of Medieval Art and Architecture by Colum Hourihane (Editor-In-Chief)
Call Number: Click title for online access.

Publication Date: 2012

Provides coverage of all aspects of art and architecture from Medieval Western Europe, from the 6th century to the early 16th century.
Medieval Jewish Civilization by Norman Roth (Editor)
Call Number: DS124 .M386 2003, Print reference (first floor)

Publication Date: 2002

Coverage is from the fall of the Roman Empire to about 1492.
Encyclopedia of Consumer Culture by Dale Southerton (Editor)
Call Number: Click on title above for online access.

Publication Date: 2011

Relevant entries include an overview of medieval consumption; sumptuary laws; the Church's views on materialism; and brief accounts of medieval technologies of work, travel, and leisure.
Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion by Valerie Steele [editor]
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access.

Publication Date: 2004

A diverse group of entries looks at larger topics such as the economics of consumption as well as more concrete subjects, such as a specific style of shoe.
Encyclopedia of Hair by Victoria Sherrow (Editor)
Call Number: TT957 .S46 2006 Print reference (first floor)

Publication Date: 2006

Examines the ways in which hair (including material objects used to adorn hair) has served as a signifier of class, gender, ethnicity, conformity/non-comfority, authority, and power throughout history.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare & Military Technology by Clifford J. Rogers; William Caferro; Shelley Reid (Editors)
Call Number: Click on title for online access

Publication Date: 2010

Examines all aspects of warfare and military technology in medieval times.