Antiques & The Role of Women in History
The “shit” that clutters the typical antiques shop is often a snapshot of the roles women played throughout history. Whether it’s the tools they used in their daily lives or the WTF objects that symbolized societal expectations, antiques tell us a lot about women’s positions in the home, workplace and society.
From Victorian-era needlework samplers to a pioneer’s cast-iron cookware, these objects give us a peek into how women lived, what was expected of them and how they shaped their own worlds, despite the limitations they faced.
Domestic Life: The "Invisible" Labor of Women
Throughout history, much of women's work has been confined to the home. Household items were not just tools but also symbols of their traditional roles as caretakers, homemakers and nurturers.
My antique cast iron meat grinder
Sad Irons: These heavy, burning hot cast iron tools were used by women (and young girls) to press clothing. The work was physically demanding and shockingly dangerous, reflecting the grueling and invisible domestic labor expected of women. Curious? Check out my article on why sad irons are so sad.
Cast Iron Cookware: From the pioneer frontier to early 20th-century kitchens, heavy-ass cast iron skillets and pots were essential for women to feed their families and put on some muscle. Cooking was a daily necessity, and the cookware used provides clues to the level of manual labor required. This labor was (...is?) often taken for granted.
Household objects can be reminders of the unpaid labor that women performed. However, they also showcase women’s creativity and skill in managing a home.
Fashion: Women as Symbols of Status and Beauty
Antique accessories like corsets, jewelry and vanity sets reveal how women’s identities were tied to their appearance (thankfully THAT’S over now…). Victorian women were expected to follow strict beauty standards, with personal grooming and clothing reinforcing their social status.
Dressing tables and hand mirrors weren’t just practical, they also reinforced women’s roles as the family’s public face of purity, modesty and wealth. Cool, huh?
Corsets: Used to mush women’s undesirably lumpy natural bodies into the highly-desirable hourglass figure, corsets reflect the Victorian ideal of femininity. They also capture the physical pressures on women and the societal pressures on appearance as an indicator of value.
Victorian Mourning Jewelry: This one is a struggle for me because my family has a history of saving hair, which I just…cannot. So, mourning jewelry. Made from jet, human hair or other…materials, this jewelry was worn during periods of mourning, particularly after the death of a family member. It was a public expression of grief tied to women’s role as the caretakers of family emotions and traditions.
All to say, women were (are) seen as objects to be, well, looked at. However, these artifacts also represent women’s agency within those confines. Many used fashion to express their identity, independence and even defiance against restrictive social norms.
Needlework and Craft: Women’s Creative Expression
Needlework, embroidery and quilting were common activities for women in the 18th and 19th centuries. These crafts were acceptable creative outlets, letting women express their skills and creativity while contributing to their households. Needlework could also serve as a subtle form of resistance, with women embedding personal or political messages into their stitches. #love
Sampler Embroidery: In the Victorian era, young girls were taught embroidery as a way to demonstrate domestic skill and moral values. Fun! However, some women used needlework to tell personal stories or commemorate events in their lives. Their samplers give us a glimpse into the private worlds of women who used their craft to record their experiences and sometimes express subversive ideas.
Quilts: Another domestic art form, often passed from mother to daughter. While quilts were practical, they were also deeply symbolic, with women using quilting circles as spaces to bond, share stories and discuss issues like suffrage or abolitionism. The first book clubs, if you will.
Needlework and quilting were often dismissed as trivial, but they were a way for women to express themselves. The detailed, symbolic designs found in many antique pieces demonstrate that women were not just passive participants in life, they were also storytellers, historians and sometimes quiet revolutionaries.
Women’s Economic Roles: Tools of Trade and Innovation
While many historical women were confined to the home, some worked by necessity or choice. Antiques related to women’s working roles, such as tools used by midwives, teachers or milliners, give insight into how women contributed to their economies.
Midwifery Instruments: Midwives played a key role in women’s reproductive health, especially in rural areas. Antique tools such as birthing chairs or forceps (cringe, shiver) reflect women as healers and caretakers who were often trusted with the lives of other women and children in ways that male doctors were not.
Millinery Tools: Hat-making was one of the few professions women could pursue in the 19th century. Milliners were often independent business owners, and their tools, such as hat forms and sewing kits, can remind us of the opportunities women had to contribute to the economy through skilled labor.
Women were more than just homemakers; they were also entrepreneurs, healers and workers who contributed to the economy. Through their trades, many women gained independence and perhaps a smidge of financial autonomy, challenging gender norms.
