Milkmaid  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

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1. A girl or young woman who milked the cows on a farm before milking machines were introduced in the 20th century.

A milkmaid was historically a woman, usually young, who milked cows and supplied milk. She also prepared the dairy products such as cream, butter, and cheese. The term is not a female equivalent of milkman.

In previous centuries, before vaccination became common, milkmaids were sometimes cited as the example of someone with good skin. This was in part due to the fact that their exposure to cowpox gave them immunity to smallpox, so they did not have the "pockmarked" complexion common to smallpox survivors.

Cultural references

• The legend of the Dun Cow and the milkmaid who guided the monks of Lindisfarne carrying the body of Saint Cuthbert to the site of the present city of Durham in 995 AD.
• The eponymous heroine of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles works as a milkmaid.
• There is a famous painting by Johannes Vermeer entitled The Milkmaid (ca. 1658). Aelbert Cuyp, another Dutch artist, created the drawing known as A Milkmaid (ca. 1640–1650).
• The California native flower commonly called Milkmaids is named for its resemblance to the hat often worn by milkmaids.
• Kid Harpoon has a song called Milkmaid; the music video features actress Juno Temple.
• The 12 days of Christmas' 8th day mentions a maid-a-milking aka milk maid.
• The Philippines has a condensed milk brand called Milkmaid, a product of Alaska Milk Corporation.

See also

• Maid
• Nursemaid
• Wet nurse