The Mirror of Venus

Iain Ferris

This book helps to further our understanding of the roles played by Roman women within Roman society; and from this we can better hope to understand the political and economic structures of ancient Rome as a whole.

Naturally, this book focuses on the more affluent corners of Roman society, as they generally had the money and time to commission pieces of art… Livia, Faustina, and Helena are some of the characters portrayed and discussed within this book.

One point to consider when learning about women in Roman art, is who this art was being created for? Was it the women themselves to communicate their own identities; or the men who would use it to further their own narrative and story? The author states that both of these are true to an extent and that’s important to keep in mind when reading throughout the book.

This book is very well researched provides another perspective from which we can analyse Roman society. This book should be of interest to anyone seeking to further their insight either into Roman art or females within wider society.

Book Details
Author: Iain Ferris
Pages: 256
Publisher: Amberley Publishing
Year: 2015
ISBN-10: 1445633728
ISBN-13: 978-1445633725
Dimensions: 15.6 x 2.8 x 23.4 cm
Tags
Women Adult