User:Vw0702/Margherita Sarrocchi

Life[edit]

Education and marriage[edit]

Girolamo Francino, S. Ceciliæ (1588)

Margherita Sarrocchi was born in Gragnano in the Neapolitan area around 1560. Her father was one Giovanni; the name of her mother is not known.

After the death of her father, she was educated in Rome, first at the monastery of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, then by Guglielmo Sirleto, the Vatican librarian, the scholar Rinaldo Corso, and finally by Luca Valerio, the mathematician and Greek scholar.

At Santa Cecilia, Sarrocchi was implored by her guardian, Cardinal Guglielemo Sirleto, to be educated in the sciences and the arts. Thus she began her journey as an early woman in science. By the age of 15, she published her first poem.

In 1599, she married Carlo Birago, a Piedmontese gentleman. She was widowed in 1613, as evidenced by a letter from Valerio to Galileo dated August of that year.

Relationship with Galileo

Sarrocchi and Galilei probably met in person in 1611 in Rome, where the scientist stayed from 29 March to 4 June. She was there to demonstrate to the members of the Curia the validity of his scientific discoveries which had been made public with the publication of the Sidereus Nuncius. The direct correspondence occurred between 29 July 1611 and 9 June 1612. This handful of letters, together with an exchange of letters with Galileo's circle, testifies to the credit that Sarrocchi enjoyed among the intellectuals of her day, even for skills in astronomy, geometry and physics. Sarrocchi and Galielo continously wrote to one another. She sought advice her The Scanderbeide as well as corresponding about his findings. Sarrocchi defended Galileo and his discoveries, not only in letters directly to Galileo, but also in her letters to others.

Sarrocchi was well known for her gatherings, or as they called them, "ridotto". She would gather great minds of the time and discuss literature and scientific findings. Most notably, Galileo attended these gatherings. Galileo and Sarrocchi became correspondents. They discussed Galileos new scientific findings, including Jupiter's satellites. As they grew closer, Sarrocchi even sent Galileo a copy of her writing, The Scanderbeide.

Sarrocchi was concerned with the opinions of Galileo on the structure of The Scanderbeide. She knew that there would be many who criticized her work, so she sought the feedback of various intellectuals about The Scanderbeide. She wrote to Galileo and sent him numerous copies of The Scanderbeide until she would receive a copy with no annotations or suggestions. She even stated in one letter to Galileo that, "[she] will accept every criticism you make as a sign of your great kindness and great affection". She strived to make the style more “Tuscan.” Together, they wrote to each other to enhance their works. Sarrocchi was looking for ways to enhance The Scanderbeide, while Galileo was looking for support for his accomplishments in order to gain additional connections. He sent Sarrocchi copies of Discourse on Floating Bodies (1612) and Letters on Sunspotsfor her input. Through her correspondence with Galileo, much is revealed about The Scanderbeide, such as its composition, linguistic characteristics, and writing style. Because Sarrocchi was an educated woman of the time, she got support from Galileo, and in return, she supported Galileo's astronomical research.

Sarrocchi was a member of the Roman academies of the Umoristi and Ordinati and of the Accademia degli Oziosi in Naples.