Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index



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  • Title: Medal of Giulia Astallia (obverse)
  • Creator: Romano, Gian Cristoforo, artist
  • Description: The young girl portrayed in profile is a character from a story by Matteo Bandello. According to the tale, she drowns herself after being violated by the servant of the bishop of Mantua. Giulia Astallia was thus a modern-day Lucretia and an example of courage and chastity. The inscription around the outer edge recalls Roman "consecratio" coins that commemorated the deification of the empress.
  • Source: WikiMedia Commons
  • Rights: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ , e.g. “Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported” Attribution: I Sailko
  • Subject (See Also): Classical Influences Rape Suicide in Literature Virginity
  • Geographic Area: Italy
  • Century: 15
  • Date: ca. 1485
  • Related Work: Reverse: phoenix on a pyre looking at the sun
  • Current Location: Washington D.C., National Gallery of Art, 1957.14.668.a
  • Original Location:
  • Artistic Type (Category): Digital images; Metalwork
  • Artistic Type (Material/Technique): Medals; Bronze
  • Donor:
  • Height/Width/Length(cm): //
  • Inscription: DIVA IULIA ASTALLIA
  • Related Resources: