Forgotten sisters: women in the history of science
Twenty-five female scientists from the past recounted in a single volume: this is Gabriella Bernardi’s The Unforgotten Sisters, a book that introduces readers to women’s contributions to science.
The Unforgotten Sisters cover Published in 2016 by Spinger, Gabriella Bernardi’s The Unforgotten Sisters was and still is a valuable book, both on a purely personal level and as a contribution to the dissemination of science in general and women’s contribution to it in particular.
From a personal and professional point of view, I have used it in recent years as one of the sources consulted for writing biographies of women scientists, both those published on my personal blog and those published here on EduINAF, for example in the few lines in which I briefly outlined the “figure” of Aganice, the ancient astronomer who opened the sky in February 2024, not to mention the astrographics on the theme of Women and Science published since 2022.
The Unforgotten Sisters, however, also has an intrinsic value that goes beyond its possible use for those involved in communicating science. Gabriella Bernardi, taking her cue from Siv Cedering’s poem Letter from Caroline Herschel, has collected 25 female scientists from the past, essentially choosing astronomers or figures who had an astronomical background.
Starting in ancient times, in the era of Aganice and Hypatia, it continued until the 19th century, concluding its journey with Mary Faifax (or Sommerville, from her husband’s surname, by which she is better known), who, as recounted in the February 2026 astrographic, played an important role in the education of Ada Lovelace, who wrote the first “computer program” at a time when computers were not even talked about.
Stories of female scientists
But let’s get back to the book. Full of interesting ideas, it is, all in all, an easy and quick read. Bernardi does not get lost in extremely detailed accounts: on the other hand, the aim of the book is not to focus on a specific figure, but to recount the importance of women’s contribution to scientific and astronomical research, without glossing over the difficulties in accessing education, or in gaining recognition for their abilities, or in overcoming the mistrust of even their closest relatives, such as Sophie Brahe with her brother Tycho, even though he was the only one in the family to support and encourage her during her education.
The pages are full of stories of this kind, even if not identical in detail, and they span all eras. In fact, there are few similar episodes in ancient times, but I remember that this is a direct consequence of the scarce and inaccurate information available on the biographies of the protagonists of those eras so distant from us.
As we move closer to our own era, however, the section dedicated to what others say about the scientist described in each chapter is not only enriched with verified quotations, but above all allows us to understand how each of them, once they had overcome the mistrust of the patriarchal world in which they grew up, gained the respect of all those who had the honour and pleasure of working with them.
The big problem, which we still need to learn to solve today in many areas, as scientists and individuals working on ourselves and as a community in general, understood as the group of women and men who “do” science every day, is the limited recognition of this work, at least equal to that of men in terms of quantity and importance.
However, I must honestly make a small criticism, the classic nitpicking that, given the starting premise, I somehow feel compelled to point out: I would have designed the book in such a way as to move the paragraph in the introduction entitled “The Three Rs” to the end, in what we might call the appendix.
Although it contains interesting information, there is a risk of alienating the general reader, who is more curious to discover these 25 great female scientists of the past. Of course, if the average reader, like me, reads the introductions and other editorial material after the main text, the choice may be irrelevant!
Another obstacle to its dissemination is the price listed on the website, both for the digital and print editions, which makes it accessible to only a few: I have purchased technical texts from Springer in a bookshop in Milan at lower prices than this book, which has the potential to reach a much wider audience.
The volume was also translated into Italian in 2025, again by Springer. Honestly, though, I recommend reading the English edition, and the reason is because the Italian translation was done using artificial intelligence. I believe that this choice, although legitimate, is nevertheless a limitation: given the importance of the subject matter, it would have been worth investing a little more time and money in producing a special edition, at least in the author’s mother tongue.
February 27, 2026 on https://edu.inaf.it/rubriche/libri/sorelle-dimenticate-gabriella-bernardi/
We talked about:
The Unforgotten Sisters https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-26127-0
Gabriella Bernardi
Springer, 14 March 2016
205 pages, e-book — €67.4
ISBN: 9783319261270
Italian book: Le Sorelle Dimenticate
Pioniere della scienza e dell’astronomia prima di Carolina Herschel
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-98547-8
