More on Lesbian Nuns in the Italian Renaissance

Sunday, June 7, 2026 - 09:00 The Lesbian Historic Motif Project Sometimes, what looks like a fascinating article simply turns out to be a view into an academic slap-fight. Still interesting but not particularly relevant. Major category: LHMPTags: LHMP LHMP #560 Bell 1987 Renaissance Sexuality and the Florentine Archives About LHMP Full citation: Bell, Rudolph M. 1987. “Renaissance Sexuality and the Florentine Archives: An Exchange” in Renaissance Quarterly, Vol. 40, No. 3: pp. 485-511 This response (and re-response) to Judith Brown’s Immodest Acts is one of those features of academic discourse in which one scholar takes a public podium to critique the scholarship and conclusions of a colleague. As usual, it includes a rebuttal by the original author. To be honest, the substance of this article hinges on details of the authorship and chronology of the primary resources but does not substantially dispute the events or conclusions with regard to Benedetta Carlini’s erotic activities.…