'The century of foundlings'—what Cynthia found when she went looking maternal family secrets

Cynthia Bannam, an Australian academic and mother who uses a wheelchair due to a 2007 aviation accident, embarks on a deeply personal journey to uncover the truth behind her great-grandmother Natalina’s origins as a foundling in Bologna, Italy. Discovered through a birth record labeled 'child of nobody,' Natalina was abandoned in 1898 at a church-run foundling home, where children were anonymously relinquished via a rotating portal in the wall. Cynthia’s initial judgment of Natalina’s mother, Ercilia Sera, as a 'bad mother' quickly gives way to profound empathy as she uncovers the harrowing context: Ercilia, a young woman who lost her entire family to death and poverty, was forced into an all-male household at age eight, raising her brother and father alone. The stigma of illegitimacy, the lack of support for unwed mothers, and the systemic violence of foundling homes—where syphilis spread through wet nurses and babies died in alarming numbers—reveal a society that punished women for their vulnerability. Cynthia’s emotional pilgrimage to Bologna, navigating its wheelchair-friendly porticos with her son on a scooter, becomes a transformative act of healing. She discovers that Ercilia’s decision to give up her daughter was not abandonment but an act of protection, ensuring Natalina’s future through a dowry and a chance at a better life. Ultimately, Natalina thrived, built a family, and lived a life of love—proving her mother’s sacrifice was rooted in care, not cruelty. The experience reshapes Cynthia’s understanding of motherhood, self-worth, and intergenerational trauma, teaching her to extend compassion not only to her ancestors but to herself.