With the astronomical cost of Venetian wedding dowries, a much cheaper option for 'spare' daughters was for them to marry Christ instead. Subsequent convent life was made slightly more palatable by joining sisters and aunts in one of those rare institutions run and managed by the women themselves. However, legal and religious archives reveal a reputation for good living, political intrigue, less than perfect standards and becoming the inevitable focus of male fantasy and oppression . . .
(Clive Yelf - bwl 99 Winter 2021 ) |
