Armed with their pens or brushes, mounted on the rumps of their horses, sailing on magnificent ships, fighting a war, loving, conspiring, reigning or ruling armies, these ladies were ahead of their time.

Women who shatter the myth that Spanish women of the past did little to rebel against or break prevailing norms. Ediciones Casiopea publishes "Illustrious Ladies in Spanish History," an unprecedented collection of rule-breakers. Creative women: painters and writers. During a time when women stayed at home embroidering, scrolls filled up with the stories envisaged by women writers who preferred to dream, and their dark lounges became illuminated by the sound of their instruments. Women like Valentina Pinelo, or Mariana de Carvajal, who were baroque to their core, curious and erudite, and who felt more at ease by the light of candles telling biographies or theatrical dramas. Women like Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, an enthusiast of books and musical instruments, who found inspiration among the walls of a convent. Ladies like María Egual, poetess and baroque playwright, like Rosario Cepeda Mayo, author endowed with an unusual talent, like the poetess Vicenta Maturana y Vázquez, or romantic literary writer and novelist Amalia de Llano y Dotres.

Read more here: TodoLiteratura