Who was Emma Morano, the world's oldest woman who died aged 117?
The Italian died on Saturday.
The world’s oldest woman has died at her home in Italy, aged 117.
Born in 1899, Emma Morano lived through wars, an abusive relationship and the death of her son at an early age. Let’s take a look back on her fascinating life.
Who was Emma Morano?
Emma Morano was born in Italy on November 29 1899.
According to her doctor of the last 24 years, Morano lost a son to cot death when he was six months old and left her husband in the first half of the last century after suffering domestic abuse.
She “abandoned the husband in the fascist era, when women were supposed to be very submissive”, Dr Bava said in a 2015 interview. “She was always very decisive.”
Morano went on to support herself by working in a factory making jute bags, then at a hotel, working way beyond the usual retirement age.
She died on Saturday while sitting in an armchair at her home in Verbania, a town on Italy’s Lake Maggiore.
What was her secret to longevity?
Morano swore by eating three raw eggs a day but also recognised genetics may have had a role to play. A few of her eight siblings lived to be over 100 and her mother reached 91.
Her doctor also revealed she ate few vegetables but did enjoy a banana or grapes, when they were in season.
Who is the oldest living person now?
A woman in Jamaica, Violet Brown, who was born on the Caribbean island on March 10 1900, is now considered the oldest known person in the world, according to a list kept by the Gerontology Research Group.
She was congratulated on Twitter by Prime Minister of Jamaica Andrew Holness.
