Italy: Local councillors' call for honouring first-ever women to get PhD stirs controversy

Two local councillors, Simone Pillitteri and Margherita Colonnello, have suggested placing a statue of the first woman in the world who has earned a PhD degree, reported The Guardian. Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia was awarded a doctorate in Philosophy from the University of Padua in 1678. The proposal to insert a statue on a well-known square in northern Italy where there are 78 statues dedicated to well-known males has led to controversy. 

Even though a statue honouring Piscopia is present at the University of Padua, two local councillors Simone Pillitteri and Margherita Colonnello, proposed celebrating her with another on one of the empty pedestals at Prato della Valle, as per The Guardian. For the proposal, the local councillors presented a motion to the city’s council. Reportedly, the proposal of the local councillors came after the Mi Riconosci, an association of professionals working in the cultural heritage sector, after undergoing a census discovered that only 148 statues were dedicated to women in public space across the country. 

Local councillors propose inserting a statue of Elena Piscopia 

The proposal of two local councillors led to controversy with detractors insisting that inserting a statue of Elena Piscopia in the square would be “out of context” with its history. Carlo Fumian, a history professor at the University of Padua, mentioned that placing the statue was an “expensive” idea and added that even though it is a “bit trendy”, however, “culturally inconsistent”, as per the news report. Art historian Davide Tramarin highlighted that two empty pedestals must remain empty as they represented the destruction caused by Napoleon’s troops. 

Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia earned her PhD in 1678

Fabrizio Magani, the superintendent of Padua’s cultural heritage, insisted that a female figure from more recent history needs to be celebrated in the square. As per the news report, Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia earned her PhD in 1678, however, her statue was not included in Prato della Valle where the authorities had planned to insert a statue. The authorities had planned to erect statues of the illustrious historical figures who were from the city or had links to it. There was 88 statues present there, paying tribute to men, including Galileo Galilei. However, 10 statues dedicated were destroyed by Napoleon troops. 

Image: Twitter/@StefanoErmon