(Antonietta), a famous enthusiastic preacher and pretended prophetess, was born at Lille in 1616. At her birth she was so deformed, that it was debated some days in the family whether it was not proper to slay her as a monster: but her deformity di- minishing, she was spared; and afterwards obtained such a degree of beauty, that she had her admirers. From her childhood to her old age she had an extraordinary turn of mind. She set up for a reformer, and published a great number of books filled with very singular no- tions; the most remarkable of which are intitled The Light of the World, and The testimony of Truth. She was an enemy to reason and common sense, which she maintained ought to give place to the illumination of divine faith; and asserted, that whenever any one was born again by embracing her doctrines, she felt the pains and throes of a woman in labour. Of her pre- tended visions and revelations we shall give one instance as a sample. In one of her ecstasies she saw Adam in the same form in which he appeared before his fall, and the manner in which he was capable of procreating oth- er men, since he himself possessed in himself the prin- ciples of both sexes*. Nay, she pretended it was told her that he had carried this procreating faculty so far as to produce the human nature of Jesus Christ. "The first man (says she), whom Adam brought forth without any concurrent assistance in his glorified state, was cho- sen by God to be the throne of the Divinity; the or- gan and instrument by which God would communicate himself externally to men: This is Christ the first born united to human nature, both God and man." Besides these and such like extravagancies, she had other for- bidding qualities: her temper was morose and peevish, in which, however, she was not much unlike other de- votees; but, contrary to the generality of such persons, she was extremely avaricious and greedy of amassing riches. She dressed like an hermit, and travelled to France, Holland, England, and Scotland. In the last she made a strong party, and some thousand sectaries, known by the name of Bourignonists. She died at Fa- neker in the province of Frise, October 30th, 1680. Her works have been printed in 18 vols octavo.