Giardineto novo di punti tagliati et gropposi per exercitio & ornamento delle donne (Venice 1554), page 9 (recto) 1554

Matteo Pagano created this woodcut pattern for needlework in Venice in 1554. The grid structure exemplifies the period's design for cutwork, where fabric threads are cut and drawn to create lace-like patterns. This book of patterns aimed to guide and embellish the lives and clothing of women. The patterns offer us a window into the domestic sphere and the prescribed roles of women in 16th-century Venetian society. The inclusion of a female figure within the grid suggests the active role of women in creating and circulating these designs. In Renaissance Venice, women's artistic expression was often confined to the domestic arts. These pattern books highlight the intersection of art, craft, and gender roles. By studying publications like this, alongside household inventories and conduct manuals, we can reconstruct a more nuanced understanding of women's lives and artistic contributions in the past. The historian's role is to contextualize such objects, revealing their significance within their specific social and institutional moment.