On Famous Women

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On Famous Women (Latin: De mulieribus claris) is a collection of one hundred and six short biographies of women by Giovanni Boccaccio, the first of such, in the West, devoted solely to women. It is modeled on Petrarch's lives Of Famous Men. The collection influenced Geoffrey Chaucer and inspired Christine de Pizan's The Book of the City of Ladies. It includes mythological and historical women, as well as some of Boccaccio's Renaissance contemporaries.

[edit] The famous women

Eve, the first woman in the bible
Semiramis, queen of the Assyrians
Opis, wife of Saturn
Juno, goddess of the Kingdoms
Ceres, goddess of the harvest and queen of Sicily
Minerva
Venus, queen of Cyprus
Isis, queen and goddess of Egypt
Europa, queen of Crete
Libya, queen of Libya
Marpesia and Lampedo, queens of the Amazons
Thisbe, a Babylonian maiden
Hypermnestra, queen of the Argives and priestess of Juno
Niobe, queen of Thebes
Hypsipyle, queen of Lemnos
Medea, queen of Colchis
Arachne of Colophon
Orithya and Antiope, queens of the Amazons
The Sybil Erythraea or Heriphile
Medusa, daughter of Phorcus
Iole, daughter of the king of the Aetolians
Deianira, wife of Hercules
Jocasta, queen of Thebes
The Sybil Almathea, or Deiphebe
Nicostrata, or Carmenta, daughter of King Ionius
Procris, wife of Cephalus
Argia, wife of Polynices and daughter of King Adrastus
Manto, daughter of Tiresias
The wives of the Minyans
Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons
Polyxena, daughter of King Priam
Hecuba, queen of the Trojans
Cassandra, daughter of King Priam of Troy
Clytemnestra, queen of Mycenae
Helen, wife of King Menelaus
Circe, daughter of the Sun
Camilla, queen of the Volscians
Penelope, wife of Ulysses
Lavinia, queen of Laurentum
Dido, or Elissa, queen of Carthage
Nicaula, queen of Ethiopia
Pamphile, daughter of Platea
Rhea Ilia, Vestal Virgin
Gaia Cyrilla, wife of King Tarquinius Priscus
Sappho, girl of Lesbos and poetess
Lucretia, wife of Collatinus
Tamyris, queen of Scythia
Leaena, a prostitute - beloved by Demetrius I of Macedon
Athaliah, queen of Jerusalem
Cloelia, a Roman maiden
Hippo, a Greek woman
Megullia Dotata - daughter of Caeso Tuccius
Veturia, a Roman matron
Thamyris, daughter of Micon
Artemisia, queen of Caria
Verginia, virgin and daughter of Virginius
Eirene, daughter of Cratinus
Leontium
Olympias, queen of Macedonia
Claudia, a Vestal Virgin
Virginia, Wife of Lucius Volumnius
Flora the prostitute, goddess of flowers and wife of Zephyrus
A young Roman woman
Marcia, daughter of Varro
Sulpicia, wife of Fulvius Flaccus
Harmonia, daughter of Gelon, son of Hiero II of Syracuse
Busa of Canosa di Puglia
Sophonisba, queen of Numidia
Theoxena, daughter of Prince Herodicus
Berenice, queen of Cappadocia
The Wife of Orgiagon the Galatian

Claudia Quinta, late medieval woodcut
Tertia Aemilia, wife of the elder Africanus
Dripetrua, queen of Laodice - daughter of Mithridates VI of Pontus
Sempronia, daughter of Gracchus
Claudia Quinta, a Roman woman
Hypsicratea, Queen of Pontus
Sempronia, a Roman Woman
The Wives of the Cimbrians
Julia, daughter of the dictator Julius Caesar
Portia, daughter of Cato Uticensis
Curia, wife of Quintus Lucretius
Hortensia, daughter of Quintus Hortensius
Sulpicia, wife of Cruscellio
Cornificia, a poetess
Mariamme, queen of Judaea (either Mariamne (second wife of Herod) or Mariamne (third wife of Herod))
Cleopatra, queen of Egypt
Antonia, daughter of Antony
Agrippina, wife of Germanicus
Paulina, a Roman woman
Agrippina, mother of the Emperor Nero
Epicharis, a freedwoman
Pompeia Paulina, wife of Seneca
Poppaea Sabina, wife of Nero
Triaria, wife of Lucius Vitellius
Proba, wife of Adelphus
Faustina Augusta
Symiamira, woman of Emesa
Zenobia, queen of Palmyra
Joan, an Englishwoman and Pope
Irene, Empress of Constantinople
Gualdrada, a Florentine maiden
Constance, Empress of Rome and queen of Sicily
Camiola, a Sienese widow
Joanna, queen of Jerusalem and Sicily