Organized as a series of engaging, thoroughly contextualized biographies, Twenty-Five Women Who Shaped the Italian Renaissance takes readers on a journey through early modern Italy that places women at the heart of the artistic and cultural developments of this transformative era.

Twenty-Five Women Who Shaped the Italian Renaissance takes readers on a journey through early modern Italy that places women at the heart of the artistic and cultural developments of this transformative era. Highlighted here are figures like Caterina Sforza, who defended her city against an invading army; Veronica Franco, the Venetian courtesan whose erotic verse enthralled Europe; Sofonisba Anguissola, acclaimed for her arresting portraits; Isabella Andreini, the original "prima donna" of Italian theater; and Margherita Sarrocchi, the epic poet and mathematics prodigy who corresponded with Galileo Galilei.

Though many of their names have been neglected by history, the artists, writers, performers, leaders, and feminists of Twenty-Five Women Who Shaped the Italian Renaissance overcame daunting obstacles to find their own voices. Excluded from the educational opportunities granted to men, often compelled into arranged marriages or confined to the convent, and subject to ingrained hostility toward female sexuality, each dared to challenge entrenched ideas about what a woman should or could do or be. Springing from a range of backgrounds and circumstances, these women defied conventions about the "proper" place of their sex to make their own mark on the Renaissance.

The perfect resource for anyone wishing to broaden their understanding of the Renaissance and early modern women.