Monna Brigida's Conversion
Title
Monna Brigida's Conversion
Alt Text Description
Grayscale illustration of an old woman standing with her head bent as the crowd around her smiles. A youth holds a decorated beretta in front of her.
Description
In Florence, Monna Brigida is stopped by a group of youths who challenge her vanity during Savonarola’s moral campaign. They lift and display her discarded adornments before the crowd, and she yields, publicly accepting a simpler, penitential identity.
“But the berretta was not allowed to lie in the basket. With impish zeal, the youngsters lifted it and held it up pitilessly, with the false hair dangling. 'See, venerable mother,' said the taller youth, 'what ugly lies you have delivered yourself now you look like the blessed Saint Anna, the mother of the Holy Virgin'" ("Monna Brigida's Conversion", Chapter 51).
“But the berretta was not allowed to lie in the basket. With impish zeal, the youngsters lifted it and held it up pitilessly, with the false hair dangling. 'See, venerable mother,' said the taller youth, 'what ugly lies you have delivered yourself now you look like the blessed Saint Anna, the mother of the Holy Virgin'" ("Monna Brigida's Conversion", Chapter 51).
Illustrator
Leighton, Frederic (1830-1896)
Contributor
Swain, Joseph (1820-1909), engraver
Publisher
George Eliot Archive , edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org
Date
1863, 1880
Rights
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Work Illustrated
Romola
Citation
Leighton, Frederic (1830-1896), Monna Brigida's Conversion, George Eliot Illustrations Gallery, George Eliot Archive , edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/83581
Illustration
