Textile production is one of the oldest specialized crafts and archaeological, iconographic and written evidence indicates that, in most ancient societies, spinning and weaving were practiced primarily by women. The reason for this is simple: it is an occupation compatible with childcare, because it can easily be carried out at home, interrupted and resumed again and throughout history women have been the primary child carers and remain so even in our highly industrialized societies. Not only were women involved in textile production but it occupied an inordinate amount of their time. It is thus hardly surprising that, over millennia textile craft became a symbol of the female sphere of life. In pre-Roman Italy, women’s contribution to the community as textile workers was illustrated in imagery and expressed by the deposition of their spinning and weaving tools in their burials. Archaeological evidence and iconography provide us with a picture of the actual (and fictional) women that spent countless hours producing textiles to dress their families, furnish their households, power the ships and much more. The cloth they wove is a tangible testimony of their skill, patience and creativity.
Women and textile production in pre-Roman Italy
Margarita Gleba
2016
Abstract
Textile production is one of the oldest specialized crafts and archaeological, iconographic and written evidence indicates that, in most ancient societies, spinning and weaving were practiced primarily by women. The reason for this is simple: it is an occupation compatible with childcare, because it can easily be carried out at home, interrupted and resumed again and throughout history women have been the primary child carers and remain so even in our highly industrialized societies. Not only were women involved in textile production but it occupied an inordinate amount of their time. It is thus hardly surprising that, over millennia textile craft became a symbol of the female sphere of life. In pre-Roman Italy, women’s contribution to the community as textile workers was illustrated in imagery and expressed by the deposition of their spinning and weaving tools in their burials. Archaeological evidence and iconography provide us with a picture of the actual (and fictional) women that spent countless hours producing textiles to dress their families, furnish their households, power the ships and much more. The cloth they wove is a tangible testimony of their skill, patience and creativity.
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