Women from History

Women from History 📖 Let's explore women’s history !
📍Nantes, France
✒ [email protected]
📚 More content on my Patreon ⬇️
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17/06/2026

I’m not arguing that authoritarian women leaders are good simply because they are women. I’m just highlighting the double standard.

17/06/2026

Wu Zetian (624–705) was the only woman in Chinese history to rule as emperor.

Rising from concubine to empress consort, she gradually took control of the Tang court and effectively ruled during Emperor Gaozong’s illness. After his death, she seized full power and founded her own dynasty, the Zhou, in 690.

Her reign was marked by strong centralization and administrative reforms. She ruled until 705, when she was forced to abdicate.

Help me uncover and share women’s history and highlight the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
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~ Women Photographers, Anna Atkins ~Anna Atkins (1799–1871) was an English botanist and photographer, widely regarded as...
17/06/2026

~ Women Photographers, Anna Atkins ~

Anna Atkins (1799–1871) was an English botanist and photographer, widely regarded as one of the most important pioneers in the early history of photography applied to science. She was born in Tonbridge, Kent, and raised by her father, John George Children, a respected scientist and member of the Royal Society. This scientific upbringing gave her an unusual education for a woman of her time.

From a young age, Atkins developed a strong interest in botany, collecting and studying plants. She also trained in scientific illustration and contributed engravings to her father’s work. Through her family’s scientific connections, she learned about early photographic techniques, particularly the cyanotype process. This method produced blue photographic images by exposing chemically treated paper to sunlight.

Atkins is best known for her pioneering work using cyanotype to document plant life. In 1843, she published British Algae: Cyanotype Impressions, which is considered the first book to be illustrated entirely with photographic images. She continued this work for several years, producing detailed photograms of algae and other plants, combining scientific accuracy with visual artistry.

Her work was significant because it demonstrated that photography could be used not only for portraiture or artistic expression but also as a scientific recording tool. She carefully arranged real plant specimens directly onto light-sensitive paper, creating precise visual records that were both informative and aesthetically striking.

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Help me uncover and share women’s stories throughout history, highlighting the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
🩷 Ko-fi (link in bio)
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🩷 Online Shop (link in bio)

~

16/06/2026

He can kill his wives and not being called "bloody"..

16/06/2026

Ninhursag was one of the most important and ancient goddesses in Mesopotamian religion and is often described as the “Mother of the Gods” and the “Mother of Humanity.” A major Sumerian deity associated with fertility, childbirth, creation or nurture, she was believed to protect women and children and to play a central role in the creation of both divine and human life.

Her worship may have roots reaching back to the Ubaid period (6500–4000 BCE), making her one of the oldest known deities in Mesopotamian tradition. She was known by many names, including Nintur, Ninmah, Mami, Aruru, Belet-ili, reflecting her different roles and local cults.

Ninhursag appears in several important Mesopotamian myths. In the Sumerian tale Enki and Ninhursag, she is linked to the paradise-like land of Dilmun, where she becomes involved in a complex cycle of creation, fertility and rebirth with the god Enki. When Enki’s actions disrupt the natural order, Ninhursag ultimately restores balance by healing him and giving birth to several deities.

Another important text, Enki and Ninmah, presents Ninhursag (under the name Ninmah) as a creator goddess who helps fashion human beings from clay. The story explores themes of disability, destiny and divine creativity through a contest between Ninmah and Enki. Although Enki ultimately triumphs, the narrative still portrays Ninhursag as a powerful and respected deity.

Throughout Mesopotamian history, Ninhursag remained a symbol of motherhood and protection. She was worshipped in numerous cities, including Adab, Kesh, Ur, Uruk, Eridu, and rulers often described themselves as having been nourished by her divine milk. In art and literature, she was portrayed as a nurturing mother who cared for both ordinary people and kings. Her influence was so enduring that scholars have compared her to later mother-goddess figures such as Isis or Gaia.

Help me uncover and share women’s history and highlight the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
🩷 Ko-fi (link in bio)
🩷 Patreon (link in bio)
🩷 Online Shop (link in bio)

~ Women Photographers, Berenice Abbott ~Berenice Abbott (1898–1991) was an American photographer, best known for her doc...
16/06/2026

~ Women Photographers, Berenice Abbott ~

Berenice Abbott (1898–1991) was an American photographer, best known for her documentary work on New York City and her contributions to modern photography. Born in Springfield, Ohio, she initially studied sculpture and was part of the artistic circles of New York and later Paris. In the 1920s, she lived in Paris, where she worked as an assistant to the surrealist photographer Man Ray and became part of the avant-garde artistic community. During this period, she also promoted the work of French photographer Eugène Atget, helping to preserve and publicize his legacy.

After returning to New York in 1929, Abbott began her most famous project, “Changing New York,” a large photographic documentation of the city during the 1930s. Working partly under the Federal Art Project, she captured the rapid transformation of the urban landscape. Her work is considered one of the most important visual records of modern urban development in the United States.

Abbott was a leading figure in the movement known as “straight photography,” which emphasized sharp focus, realism and minimal manipulation of images. She believed photography should represent reality clearly and objectively. Her approach contrasted with pictorialist photography, which aimed to imitate painting and often used soft focus and artistic effects.

From the 1940s onward, she also worked in scientific photography, creating images that explained physical and natural phenomena in a visually accessible way. She developed innovative techniques to illustrate concepts in physics and other sciences, showing her belief that photography could serve as a bridge between science and the public.

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Help me uncover and share women’s stories throughout history, highlighting the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
🩷 Ko-fi (link in bio)
🩷 Patreon (link in bio)
🩷 Online Shop (link in bio)

~

15/06/2026

"But what if she's on her period?"

15/06/2026

For decades, women’s insecurities have been closely tied to capitalism. Corporations have frequently turned female anxieties into profitable markets, creating or reinforcing beauty standards, body image concerns, hygiene fears in order to sell products. By persuading women that something about them is abnormal, companies can then offer a product as the solution.

Help me uncover and share women’s history and highlight the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
🩷 Ko-fi (link in bio)
🩷 Patreon (link in bio)
🩷 Online Shop (link in bio)

~ Women Photographers, Alice Boughton ~Alice Boughton (1866–1943) was an American photographer associated with the picto...
15/06/2026

~ Women Photographers, Alice Boughton ~

Alice Boughton (1866–1943) was an American photographer associated with the pictorialist movement, best known for her portrait work and her contributions to early 20th-century fine art photography. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she studied art and photography at the Pratt School of Art and Design, where she met influential photographer Gertrude Käsebier, who strongly influenced her artistic development. She also studied in Paris and worked as Käsebier’s assistant, gaining early professional experience.

In 1890, Boughton opened her own portrait studio in New York City, which she operated for about forty years. She became one of the most respected portrait photographers in the city, photographing many prominent literary, artistic and theatrical figures. Her subjects included writers such as Henry James and Eugene O’Neill, as well as actors and cultural personalities of her time.

Beyond portraiture, Boughton also produced landscapes, allegorical compositions and studies of female nudes. Her work was exhibited internationally and she gained recognition in major exhibitions in Europe and the United States. She was also associated with the Photo-Secession movement led by Alfred Stieglitz, which sought to establish photography as a legitimate form of fine art. Her work was featured in influential publications such as Camera Work and she was named a Fellow of the Photo-Secession in 1906.

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Help me uncover and share women’s stories throughout history, highlighting the social forces that shaped their lives. Each publication reflects hours of research, aimed at empowering as many people as possible. To support me :
🩷 Ko-fi (link in bio)
🩷 Patreon (link in bio)
🩷 Online Shop (link in bio)

~

14/06/2026

The problem has never been women's clothing.

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