Nine Heroines / Nine Worthy Women

Abstract: The nine heroines were a collection of figures that arose in the late Middle Ages as a counterpart to the older list of nine heroes. Like that male canon, the female figures claimed fame on the basis of their recorded deeds. Starting from France ('neuf preuses'), distinct traditions with a varying selection of women developed in England ('Nine Worthy Women' or 'Nine Ladies Worthy') and Germany ('Neun gute Heldinnen' or 'Neun beste Frauen'). Originating in literary sources, the nine heroines form an iconographic topos, which appears in all kinds of visual media. They are commonly portrayed together with the nine heroes in illuminated manuscripts, frescoes and panel paintings, as monumental sculptures, in tapestries, on playing cards and as part of festive entrées. The conceptualisation of the female canon was subject to a considerable number of changes in its reception history. As an element of the mediaeval aristocratic lifeworld, the nine heroines served representative purposes and embodied models of feminine rule and chivalry, while their later early modern conceptualisation found its way into early humanist discourses on virtuous heroism through the inclusion of ancient and biblical heroines

Angaben zum Objekt

• Standort: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Umfang: Online-Ressource
• Ausgabe: Version 1.0, published 28 June 2024
• Sprache: Englisch

Klassifikation und Themen

• Schlagwort: Neun beste Frauen ; Neun gute Helden ; Heldin ; Tugendheld ; Kriegerin ; Herrscherin ; Heilige ; Kanon ; Ikonographie ; Topos ; Literarische Gestalt ; Allegorie

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wo): Freiburg
• (wer): Universität
• (wann): 2024
• Urheber: Niedermeier, Nina
• Beteiligte Personen und Organisationen: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. Sonderforschungsbereich 948 "Helden - Heroisierungen - Heroismen"

Weitere Informationen

• DOI: 10.6094/heroicum/nhe1.0.20240628
• URN: urn:nbn:de:bsz:25-freidok-2561216
• Rechteinformation: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 14.08.2025, 10:49 MESZ