Illumination from a Diurnal, ms. Ms. Ludwig IX 14 (83.ML.110), f. 17v, ca. 1485, The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.

Here we are again, celebrating the women praised by Boccaccio in his De mulieribus claris: our woman of the week is Sempronia, who lived during the last decades of the end of the Roman Republic.…

Capital "E", illumination from the manuscript "Gradualis sanctorum Ecclesiae Parisiensis pars II", ms. RES VMA MS-1411, p. 25, 1669, Département Musique, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris.

Yes, Folia Magazine is finally back! And what better way to reprise our columns than doing so with our beloved Women's Wednesday? Our protagonist of the week is famous for leaving her traditional feminine role,…

We are back with another Women's Wednesday! Our guest this week is Claudia Quinta, a Roman woman who managed to single-handedly (and literally so!) save herself from false accusations and become a symbol of greatness…

Illumination from a Flemish Book of Hours, ms. Ludwig IX 9 (83.ML.105), f. 7r, after 1460, The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.

"Mon cueur veult estre en ceste Margueryte", illumination from the manuscript "Petit Livre d'Amour" di Pierre Sala, ms. Stowe MS 955, f. 6r, ca. 1500, British Library, London. The Petit Livre d'Amour consists of a collection…

Have you ever felt pressured to lie (or even to swear falsely) just to please someone in a much higher position? This situation, which may sound very modern, is probably as old as time itself:…

It is finally Easter! We celebrate the occasion with this delightful illumination depicting the meeting between the Three Marys, the followers of Jesus who had gone visit the by then empty tomb, and the Angel…

We continue the Easter Triduum by moving on to Good Friday. As the "apex" day of the Passion, the iconography of Good Friday is among the richest in scenes, events, and characters. In addition to…