Iconographic micro-history of Maria Montessori 150 years after her birth. Figurines, coins, stamps

Abstract

The aim of the present study is to highlight and to critically discuss the role of the secondary and silent historical sources in the reconstruction of the biography of Maria Montessori, a century and a half after her birth. The collective memory, both at a national and international levels, has preserved the figure of the pedagogist into a series of celebratory objects. Picture card, notes and coins, stamps maximum cards, phone cards or, more recently, doodles are accessible to the wide community. Constructing a narrativity of a public celebrity means capturing the important features, and transforming them into symbolic constructs. We therefore propose to identify the overmentioned constructs in the light of the official biographies of Maria Montessori. Moreover, we aim to follow the iconographic traces of a micro-history which is often overlooked from the primary sources. However, this micro-history represents the heart of a collective and popular belief, widespread and educating, which preserves the memory and heritage of this “Personality to Remember".