Part 1: Part 2: A woman undressing to take a bath is in a vulnerable position. She is alone, half-nude, self-absorbed, and unprepared for others to watch her. For centuries, however, women experienced the ordinary act of washing in less than complete solitude. Women of a certain class were rarely alone, even when attending to the most intimate parts of their bodies. Their lives were, in a sense, communal property, especially those of wealthier women who until the mid-19th century were the ones most frequently depicted in the artwork.
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