by Tara Mulder
University of California Press
5/5/2026, paperback
SKU: 9780520398740
A bold new history of women's health, brought to life through ancient women's stories of pregnancy and birth.
In the well-trod history of the Roman Empire, a pivotal moment has long gone unnoticed: It was in ancient Rome that medical men first set their sights on childbirth, the traditional domain of female midwives.
Taking us to the dawn of Western obstetrics, A Womb of One's Own offers a feminist account of how, against a long tradition of midwifery, male doctors began claiming authority in reproductive matters, with an emphasis on theoretical rather than practical knowledge. Their intrusion paved the way for the later criminalization of midwives and the cloaking of childbirth in secrecy and shame.
Yet communities of Roman women continued to help each other through the journey from preconception to postpartum, guided by their own experience and the expertise of midwives. Tara Mulder recovers stories of ancient women living and resisting as they sought autonomy over their bodies and their health. Recounting their experiences in vivid, intimate detail, she reveals how old our modern conflicts about birth truly are.
Reviews:
"It is said that stories are data with a soul. In naming women--and telling their stories--Mulder not only honors the rich and complex experiences of childbearing women in ancient Rome but also reminds us that the history of obstetrics is not confined to the past. It forms the very foundation of the beliefs, narratives, and structures that have long displaced women from our central role in the birthing suite--a legacy that still echoes in many modern obstetric practices. By illuminating where we have come from, Mulder reveals where we stand today, offering a powerful reminder that midwives and birthing women have the wisdom, agency, and resilience to ensure history does not continue to dictate destiny." -- Aviva Romm, MD and midwife
"A readable, illuminating, and often deeply moving journey through childbirth. Mulder's book not only works the magic of bringing ancient texts and artefacts alive to piece together the fragments of women's lost histories, it performs the feat of rewriting the history of Rome out of death and into a birth story." -- Emily Hauser, bestselling author of Penelope's Bones: A New History of Homer's World through the Women Written Out of It
About the Author:
Tara Mulder is Assistant Professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As the daughter of a homebirth midwife, she has assisted in over two dozen births.