Maidens or Monsters?

This exquisite book builds on ongoing trends
for re-telling classical and medieval stories from the perspective of female
characters.  Powerful tales are presented alongside
some of the most exquisite examples of art to survive from the eighth to the
sixteenth centuries.

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Chantry Westwell has used her
profound knowledge of the Library’s unrivalled Medieval and Renaissance
illuminated manuscript collections to explore some of literature’s most
enduring and multi-layered stories, together with the deep history of the
books and chronicles in which they were first preserved. A follow-up to the
author’s highly successful Dragons, Heroes, Myths & Magic (2021), this
new volume builds on ongoing trends for re-telling classical and medieval
stories from the perspective of female characters as well as exploring how
female reputations are exalted or ruined to suit the particular ideals of
different eras and cultures. Maidens or Monsters includes dedicated sections
on warrior women, women of virtue, power, tragedy, as well as enigmatic and
allegorical women.These powerful tales are
presented alongside some of the most exquisite examples of art to survive
from the eighth to the sixteenth centuries as medieval artists responded to
the inspiring storylines with their own works of supreme beauty.