Caterina Vitale (1566–1619) was the first female pharmacist and chemist in Malta, and the first female pharmacist of the Knights Hospitaller.[1]
Caterina Vitale | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1566 |
| Died | 1619 (aged 52–53) |
| Resting place | Carmelite Church, Valletta |
| Nationality | Greek |
| Known for | 1st Maltese woman pharmacist and chemist, Knights Hospitaller pharmacist |
| Spouse | Ettore Vitale |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | |
| Institutions | Knights Hospitaller |
Caterina Vitale was originally from Greece.[2] She married Ettore Vitale, pharmacist of the Knights Hospitaller, when she was a teenager.[1][3] Upon his death in 1590, she inherited his pharmacy and the task of providing pharmacies to the Sacra Infermeria.[1] She was described as a successful businessperson, became very rich, and is known as a benefactor of the Carmelites.[1]
Being in an uncommon position for a woman, she was a controversial person and the subjects of legends, libelous slander and rumours, and was accused of being an enterprising prostitute, litigator and sadistic torturer of slaves.[3]
She died in 1619 at Syracuse and her body was brought to Valletta and buried at the Carmelite Church.[4] To the left and right as you enter the church are her tombstone, and the tombstone of Caterina Scappi, the founder of the first hospital for women in Malta.[5]
Upon her death she bequeathed part of her fortune and her property Selmun Palace to the Monte della Redenzione degli Schiavi, a charity founded during the reign of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt in 1607 to finance the redemption of the Maltese who had fallen into slavery.[6][7] She also left legacies to the Order of Malta, to her niece, to the Carmelites, to the Greek Church, but left nothing to her daughter.[citation needed]