From Consul Burton to Baroness Economo: Theosophy in the Bourgeois Trieste between the 19th and 20th Centuries

On Tuesday 19 March, as part of the lecture series promoted by the "Manlio Cecovini Study Society" a talk was held entitled From Consul Burton to Baroness Economo. Traces of Theosophy in the Biographies of Trieste’s Bourgeois Families from the Late 19th Century to the Post-War Period. The speaker for the evening was Marina Silvestri, journalist and writer, who has long been engaged in the study of biographies and cultural history, with a particular focus on the Northern Adriatic region.

Silvestri retraced the connection between Trieste and Theosophy, a spiritual and philosophical movement which found fertile ground in the Austro-Hungarian city thanks to its cosmopolitan openness and widespread interest in the occult and esoteric dimensions. Beginning with the figure of British consul Sir Richard Francis Burton, orientalist and enthusiast of esoteric studies, the speaker illustrated how Trieste, straddling the 19th and 20th centuries, became a key hub in the links between Europe and India, the homeland of the Theosophical Society founded by Helena Blavatsky.

The narrative highlighted the existence of salons and cultural circles where Theosophy, spiritualism, social reform, and artistic experimentation intertwined. Particular attention was paid to figures such as Isabel Burton, the consul’s wife, known for her animal welfare activism and cultural promotion, as well as personalities like Alexander Grant Greenham, who established the first Trieste branch of the Theosophical Society in 1908, and Rudolf Steiner, who gave a lecture at the Schiller Circle in 1911.

Silvestri emphasised how, alongside the interest in spiritualism and Eastern doctrines, Trieste witnessed the early development of animal protection movements and vegetarian awareness, rooted in the Theosophical belief in universal brotherhood and reincarnation. This ideal and practical connection continued into the post-war period with figures such as Baroness Maria Nora Economo, who in 1960 founded the ASTAD shelter for abandoned animals.

The talk offered an opportunity to rediscover a lesser-known aspect of the city’s history, underlining how Theosophical culture and esotericism helped shape a vibrant and open Triestine milieu, capable of connecting spirituality, science, and social engagement.

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