Elena Cornaro Piscopia trivia: 80 amazing facts about the famous philosopher!

Elena Cornaro Piscopia was a philosopher from Venice with noble decent. She was, also, one of the first women to attend University!

So let’s dig into some trivia and facts about her life!

Her name was Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia or Elena Lucrezia Corner
She was born on 5 June 1646
She died on 26 July 1684
She is also known in English as Helen Cornaro
She was a Venetian philosopher of noble descent
Who in 1678 became one of the first women to receive an academic degree from a university
Elena Cornaro Piscopia was born in the Palazzo Loredan, at Venice, Republic of Venice on 5 June 1646
She was the third child of Gianbattista Cornaro-Piscopia and his mistress Zanetta Boni
Her mother was a peasant and her parents were not married at the time of her birth
Lady Elena was therefore not technically a member of the Cornaro family by birth
As Venetian law barred illegitimate children of nobles from noble privilege
Even if recognized by the noble parent
Worse for Zanetta’s case, she was from an extremely poor peasant family
Zanetta had likely fled to Venice in order to escape starvation
And soon found herself the mistress of a member of one of the most powerful noble dynasties in the Republic
Gianbattista and Zanetta married officially in 1654
But their children were barred from noble privilege
Which galled him
In 1664, her father was chosen to become the Procuratore di San Marco de supra, the treasurer of St. Mark’s Cathedral
A coveted position among Venetian nobility
At that point, Gianbattista was second only to the Doge of Venice in terms of precedence
Because of this connection, Lady Elena was prominent in the Marriage of the Sea celebration
Even though she was born illegitimate
Her father tried to arrange betrothals for her several times
But she rebuffed each man’s advances
Early biographers’ suggestion that she took a vow of chastity at age 11 are disputed by Francesco Ludovico Maschietto
In 1665 she took the habit of a Benedictine oblate without, however, becoming a nun
As a young girl, Lady Elena was seen as a prodigy
By the advice from Giovanni Fabris, a priest who was a friend of the family, she began a classical education
She studied Latin and Greek under distinguished instructors
And became proficient in these languages
As well as French and Spanish, by the age of seven
She also mastered Hebrew and Arabic
Earning the title of Oraculum Septilingue (“Seven-language Oracle”)
Her later studies included mathematics, philosophy and theology
Elena came to be an expert musician
Mastering the harpsichord, the clavichord, the harp and the violin
Her skills were shown by the music that she composed in her lifetime
In her late teens and early twenties she became interested in physics, astronomy and linguistics
Carlo Rinaldini, her tutor in philosophy, and at that point the Chairman of Philosophy at the University of Padua, published a book in 1668 written in Latin and centering on geometry
The book was dedicated to a twenty-two year old Elena
After the death of her main tutor, Fabris, she became even closer to Rinaldini
Who took over her studies
In 1669, she translated the Colloquy of Christ by Carthusian monk Lanspergius from Spanish into Italian
The translation was dedicated to Gian Paolo Oliva
Her close friend and confessor
The volume was issued in five editions in the Republic from 1669 to 1672
She was invited to be a part of many scholarly societies when her fame spread
And in 1670 she became president of the Venetian society Accademia dei Pacifici
Upon the recommendation of Carlo Rinaldini, her tutor in philosophy, Felice Rotondi, petitioned the University of Padua to grant Cornaro the laurea in theology
When Cardinal Gregorio Barbarigo, the bishop of Padua, learned that she was pursuing a degree in theology, he refused on the grounds that she was a woman
However, he did allow for her to get a degree in philosophy
And after a brilliant course of study she received the laurea in Philosophy
The degree was conferred on 25 June 1678, in Padua Cathedral in the presence of the University authorities, the professors of all the faculties, the students, and most of the Venetian Senators
Together with many invited guests from the Universities of Bologna, Perugia, Rome and Naples
Lady Elena spoke for an hour in Classical Latin
Explaining difficult passages selected at random from the works of Aristotle
One from the Posterior Analytics
And the other from the Physics
She was listened to with great attention and when she had finished, she received plaudits
As Professor Rinaldini proceeded to award her the insignia of the laurea
A book of philosophy, a laurel wreath on her head, a ring on her finger, and over her shoulders an ermine mozzetta
She was proclaimed Magistra et Doctrix Philosophiae [“teacher and doctor in philosophy”]
The last seven years of her life were devoted to study and charity
She died in Padua in 1684 of tuberculosis
And was buried in the church of Santa Giustina
Cornaro’s death was marked by memorial services in Venice, Padua, Siena and Rome
The Accademia degli Infecondi published two memorial volumes of tributes by members
One to mark her degree
And the other her death
Padua’s Accademia dei Ricovrati also produced a volume at her death
Her statue was placed in the University of Padua
Which caused a medal to be struck in her honour in 1685
In 1895 Abbess Mathilda Pynsent of the English Benedictine Nuns in Rome had Cornaro’s tomb opened
The remains placed in a new casket
And a suitable tablet inscribed to her memory
Her graduation ceremony is depicted in the Cornaro Window,
Installed in 1906 in the West Wing of the Thompson Memorial Library at Vassar College
At the suggestion of Ruth Crawford Mitchell, Cornaro is depicted in Giovanni Romagnoli’s 1949 mural in the Italian Nationality Room at the University of Pittsburgh
On 5 June 2019, Google celebrated her 373rd birthday with a Google Doodle