ABSTRACT

My principal aim in this chapter is to highlight the presence of women in the activities constitutive of science in early-modern Europe. In the first part, I offer an account of what constituted science in this period, and discuss some of the historiographical issues to be faced when assessing the contribution of women. The second part of the chapter discusses the kinds of activity through which early-modern women were involved with science (as patrons, theorists and practitioners), illustrating these with examples of women who pursued their interest in science in these capacities.