Florence, Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore launches podcast series on women

For International Women’s Day, March 8, 2024, theOpera di Santa Maria del Fiore is launching the new podcast series Voices of Women: the monuments of Florence Cathedral told in the feminine.

The series is divided into eight episodes; they begin on March 8 and continue every Friday. The podcast narrates the vast feminine universe in the works and monuments of Florence Cathedral. Historical, biblical characters, saints, and artists tell their stories, such as the moving flower girl of a Roman sarcophagus in the Baptistery or the Santa Reparata sculpted by Amalia Duprè. The first installment is on Eve, represented by Michelangelo and others. This is followed by the mysterious Lottieri Sisters, Santa Reparata, Amalia Duprè, Magdalene, Salome, the flower girl, the Madonna and the Sibyls. A women’s itinerary between the Cathedral, Baptistery, Santa Reparata and the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo. On the same day, residents of Florence and province will be able to enter the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Baptistery and Santa Reparata free of charge with the Giglio pass.

Eva

In the podcast, Eve presents herself as a female archetype beyond the biblical context, addressing all women. She describes herself through works in Florence Cathedral, such as Ghiberti’s Gate of Paradise, panels by Andrea Pisano, Donatello ’s relief, and Lot Torelli’s sculpture.

The Lottieri sisters

During excavations of the basilica of Santa Reparata during the previous century, a tombstone was found depicting a female figure dressed as a widow or nun, with a rosary in her hands. Although the inscription indicated the burial of sisters Lucia and Scotta Lottieri, who died in 1341, the depiction remains an enigma. In the podcast, the two sisters will discuss female life in Florence in the 14th century, with some nice disagreements.

Santa Reparata by Amalia Duprè

In the left sguancio of the main portal of the Cathedral, the marble statue of Santa Reparata, created by Florentine sculptor Amalia Duprè, reveals the mastery of the first woman artist in Florentine art history. Daughter and disciple of Giovanni Duprè, his work dialogues with Amalia in the episode, immortalizing the third-century martyr. Santa Reparata, patron saint of Florence, becomes a mirror for Amalia, an extraordinary 19th-century Florentine figure, citing the basilica dedicated to her and other representations in the Duomo’s monuments.

Mary Magdalene

The protagonist of this monologue is Mary Magdalene, an evangelical figure associated with redemption, a disciple of Jesus and a penitent hermit in the desert according to apocryphal tradition. In Florence, her cult is represented in works such as Donatello’s Penitent Magdalene, now in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo. Through her voice, the listener explores the archetype of a strong and fragile woman, combining themes of spirit and body, inner and outer beauty, perdition and redemption, sacrifice and love.

Salome

The figure of Salome, associated with the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist, reflects on her life as a woman of high rank in Herod’s time. Through works of art such as the group by Vincenzo Danti and the embroideries of the Parade of St. John by Pollaiolo, her story and representation in art are revealed.

Sarcophagus known as “of the flower girl”

In the Baptistery, the tomb of Giovanni da Velletri, archbishop of Florence who died in 1230, includes an ancient sarcophagus dating to the third century and a wall inscription. The sarcophagus shows a moving figure of a floral wreath seller. In the podcast, this woman is imagined to be talking about her life during the ancient Roman empire, allowing a comparison with the condition of women in the contemporary world.

Madonna

The Madonna, the cardinal symbol of the Christian faith and titular of Florence Cathedral, takes voice in the episode, narrating her earthly and heavenly life. Through works of art such as Arnolfo di Cambio’s Our Lady with the Glass Eyes, she reveals her human and divine essence, embodying the Franciscan revolution in art and the symbolism of universal purity and motherhood.

Sibyls

Sibyls, ancient pagan prescient figures, close the series with a glimpse of the future. Although they belonged to the pre-Christian world, they were integrated into the Catholic tradition for their supposed prophecy of the Messiah, especially by the 14th century and later in the Renaissance. Two sibyls, depicted in Giotto’s campanile, confront each other about their female divinatory power and the history of women’s status.

Image: Eve in one of the frames of the Gate of Paradise.

Florence, Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore launches podcast series on women

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