Born: 5 June 1646, Italy
Died: 26 July 1684
Country most active: Italy
Also known as: Elena Lucrezia Corner, Helen Cornaro
The following is excerpted from the Prospetto biografico delle donne italiane rinomate in letteratura dal secolo decimoquarto fino a’ giorni nostri di Ginevra Canonici Fachini (Biographical Survey of Italian Women Renowned in Literature from the Fourteenth Century to the Present Day by Ginevra Canonici Fachini), published in 1824 and made available by Project Gutenberg.
Piscopia – Cornaro, Elena, di Venezia. N. 1646. M. 1684.
Studiò le lingue greca, latina, ebraica, spagnuola, francese, ed un poco l’arabica. Conobbe la filosofia, la matematica, la teologia, l’astronomia, e fu laureata nel duomo di l’adova nel 1678. Fu dotta altresi nella musica, e s’accompagnava cantando i suoi versi. Va annoverata fra le più illustri donne Italiane, ed il celebre Carlo Patino le ha dedicato qualche suo libro facendole grandissimi elogi. Ebbe in morte una splendida Raccolta di Componimenti pubblicatasi in Roma.
Elogj latinamente scritti d’ alcuni illustri Italiani. —
Lettere latine . — Discorsi accademici in lingua volgare. — Una traduzione dallo Spaglinolo di un opera di Lanspergio, oltre qualche Poesia. Tiratoselo Stor. Lett. Ital. T. V.II, P. 3
Bacchini, Vita ed Opere di Piscopia Cornaro. Parma, 1688, in 8 vo.
Piscopia – Cornaro, Elena, of Venice. B. 1646. D. 1684.
She studied Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Spanish, French, and a little Arabic. She was familiar with philosophy, mathematics, theology, and astronomy, and received a doctorate from the Cathedral of Ispra in 1678. She was also a scholar of music, and accompanied herself by singing her own verses. She is counted among the most illustrious Italian women, and the celebrated Carlo Patino dedicated several of his books to her, lavishing her with the highest praise. Upon her death, she received a splendid collection of compositions published in Rome.
Eulogies written in Latin by some illustrious Italians. —
Latin letters. — Academic discourses in the vernacular. — A translation from the Spanish of a work by Lanspergio, as well as some poems. Historian. Ital. Letters, Vol. V. II, p. 3
Bacchini, Life and Works of Piscopia Cornaro. Parma, 1688, in 8 volumes.
IW note: she was one of the first women to receive an academic degree from a university and the first to receive a Doctor of Philosophy.