ABSTRACT
Lay members of the Florentine confraternity of Santa Maria del Bigallo gathered regularly in their oratory in the heart of the city facing both the city’s Cathedral and Baptistery, for worship, edification, and business. They listened to each other’s confessions of lapses from the communal rule, and offered criticism or encouragement. They argued about the business of the brotherhood and over who should serve in what role. They discussed the income and expenses of the many small local hospitals housed in the many dozens of properties that were under their care, and talked of roofs that needed fixing, and of gates, doors, wardens, and priests that had fallen off their hinges and needed replacing.
