Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities
The Cultural Significance Of Precious Stones In Early Modern England, Cassandra Auble
The Cultural Significance Of Precious Stones In Early Modern England, Cassandra Auble
Department of History: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Sixteenth and seventeenth century sources reveal that precious stones served a number of important functions in Elizabethan and early Stuart society. The beauty and rarity of certain precious stones made them ideal additions to fashion and dress of the day. These stones also served political purposes when flaunted as examples of a country’s wealth, bestowed as favors, or even worn as a show of royal support. Lapidaries and medical texts advised readers to use stones in myriad ways ranging from the subtle and common, to the bizarre and mystical.
Stones and gems are excellent tools for studying diverse aspects of …
Piracy, Slavery, And Assimilation: Women In Early Modern Captivity Literature, David C. Moberly
Piracy, Slavery, And Assimilation: Women In Early Modern Captivity Literature, David C. Moberly
Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
This thesis examines a hitherto neglected body of works featuring female characters enslaved in Islamicate lands. During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, many Englishmen and women were taken captive by pirates and enslaved in what is now the Middle East and North Africa. Several writers of the time created narratives and dramas about the experiences of such captives. Recent scholarship has brought to light many of these works and pointed out their importance in establishing what was still a young, unsure, and developing English identity in this early period. Most of this scholarship, however, has dealt with narratives of the …