Since I created an "accidental mini-theme" of primary source documents in the current series of assorted journal articles and book excerpts, I thought I'd toss in a fascinating--if regularly offensive--source that is referenced in many works on the history of lesbianism. Brantôme's treatise is not intended to be a sober sociological study of women's same-sex relationships among his contemporaries in later 16th century France. The work is steeped in the male gaze and riddled through with patriarchal and misogynistic attitudes. But at the same time, it presents an unblinking look (indeed, an outright stare) at both the attitudes of elite men of that time, and most likely some version of the reality of women's lives. We also get information on the everyday language of sexuality, including clear examples of lesbienne used as a noun for the author's contemporaries (not simply an ambiguous reference to ancient Greeks who might or might not have been exclusively interested in same-sex love), and slang for various sex acts described in clear detail, such as tongue-kissing and tribadism. This is a different level of evidence than one gets from medical manuals or regurgitations of classical authors (though we get that as well).
The text also turns up some amusing surprises, such as the assertion that women used images of weasels (or even kept weasels as pets) to indicate their interest in same-sex love.
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