Place Pignotte

The word pignotte refers to small breadrolls given to the poor, and comes from the Italian word 'pagnotta' which means a small piece of bread. The handing out of the bread stopped when the popes left Avignon. In 1632, a shelter for women was founded on the site of the former cemetery. The shelter, known as the "House of the poor repented women of Saint Mary the Egyptian', took in married and unmarried women with scandalous reputations, who were concubine or the source of scandal due to their...