Giovanni Riccioli – astronomer

Jesuit priest had a crater on the moon named after him

Giovanni Battista Riccioli pictured in
an illustration from a 17th century book

Giovanni Battista Riccioli, a Jesuit priest who became one of the principal astronomers of the 17th century, was born on this day in 1598 in Ferrara.

He was renowned for his experiments with pendulums and falling bodies and for his studies of the motion of the earth and the surface of the moon.

Riccioli entered the Society of Jesus when he was 16 and after completing his training began studying the humanities.

Between 1620 and 1628 he studied philosophy and theology at the Jesuit College in Parma, where he was taught by Giuseppe Biancani, who had accepted new ideas such as the existence of lunar mountains.

After Riccioli was ordained he taught physics and metaphysics at Parma and engaged in experiments with falling bodies and pendulums. He is believed to be the first scientist to measure the rate of acceleration of a freely falling body. He also carried out observations of the surface of the moon.

Riccioli's moon map, which he drew in 1651

Riccioli became more committed to studying astronomy than theology and his superiors in the Jesuits assigned him to carry out astronomical research.

He went to work at a college in Bologna where he built an observatory equipped with telescopes and instruments for astronomical observation.

One of his most significant works was his Almagestum Novum, an encyclopaedic volume packed with illustrations and tables that became a standard reference book for astronomers. He continued to publish works on astronomy and theology and to correspond with other scientists right up to his death at the age of 73 in 1671 in Bologna.

A crater on the moon has been named the Riccioli crater in honour of the astronomer.

Ferrara's impressive castle

Travel tip:

Ferrara in Emilia-Romagna, where Riccioli was born, was the city of the Este dukes and still has winding cobbled streets, medieval houses, Renaissance palaces and a stunning castle. It has been declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco.

Travel tip:

Bologna, where Riccioli worked until he died, is the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region and home to the oldest university in the world, which was founded in 1088. An important cultural and artistic centre, Bologna is famous the world over for its dish of tagliatelle al ragù bolognese, strips of pasta with a rich, meat sauce.

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Antonio Starabba Marchese di Rudini – Prime Minister

Bloodshed in Milan marred liberal premier’s time in office

Political leader Antonio Starabba, Marchese di Rudini, who twice served as prime minister of Italy, was born on this day in 1839 in Palermo in Sicily.

During his second term in office, Di Rudini’s Government passed social legislation to create an obligatory workmen’s compensation scheme and a fund for disability and old age pensions but they were also blamed for the army’s brutal treatment of rioters in Milan.

Prime Minister Di Rudini

Di Rudini was born into an aristocratic but liberal Sicilian family and grew up to join the revolutionaries in Sicily.

He became Mayor of Palermo and successfully resisted the opponents of national unity. He was then promoted to Prefect and given the task of suppressing the brigands in Sicily.

After entering parliament, Di Rudini became leader of the right wing but when he became premier in 1891 he formed a coalition with the left and began economic reforms.

When Di Rudini became prime minister for the second time in 1896, the Italian army had just been defeated in Ethiopia and he signed the peace treaty to end the war there.

In 1898, riots in Milan about food prices were brutally repressed by General Fiorenzo Bava-Beccaris and many of the demonstrators were killed or wounded. The conduct of the army led to the fall of Di Rudini’s government the following month, but he retained his seat in the Italian parliament until his death in Rome in 1908.


Travel tip:

Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean, just off the toe of Italy’s boot. The ancient ruins, diverse architecture and cuisine enjoyed by visitors are all testament to the island’s colourful history. Watching over the island is Mount Etna, a volcano that is still active. 

The Palazzo dei Normanni in Palermo
(Photo: Bjs CC BY-SA 2.5)

Travel tip:

Palermo, the capital of Sicily, where Di Rudini was born, is famous for its history, culture, architecture, food and wine. It has examples of Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque churches and palaces. Palazzo dei Normanni, a marvellous example of Norman architecture, is the seat of the Sicilian Regional Assembly. The Teatro Massimo, the biggest theatre in Italy, has staged operas starring Enrico Caruso.

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Leonardo da Vinci – painter and inventor

Artist regarded as most talented individual ever to have lived

The presumed self-portrait of
Leonardo in Turin's Royal Library

Leonardo da Vinci, painter, draftsman, sculptor, architect and engineer, was born on this day in 1452 near Vinci in Tuscany.

Leonardo’s genius epitomises the Renaissance ideal of possessing all round accomplishments and his wall painting of the Last Supper and portrait of the Mona Lisa are among the most popular and influential artworks of all time.

His surviving notebooks reveal a spirit of scientific enquiry and a mechanical inventiveness that were centuries ahead of their time.

Leonardo received an elementary education but must have shown early artistic inclinations because his father apprenticed him to Andrea del Verrocchio in Florence when he was 15, in whose workshop he was trained in painting and sculpting. There are many superb pen and pencil drawings still in existence from this period, including sketches of military weapons and apparatus.

Some of Leonardo’s drawings have been widely reproduced over the centuries and are now even used on T-shirts and coins
.
Leonardo moved to Milan in 1482 to work for the Duke, Ludovico Sforza, where he was listed as both a court painter and engineer. In addition to his works of art, he designed court festivals and advised on architecture and fortifications.

The Mona Lisa is arguably the most
famous of all Leonardo's works

One of his early works was the altar painting, the Virgin of the Rocks, which is now in the Louvre in Paris.

He also spent three years painting the Last Supper on to the wall of the refectory of the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in the city.

In 1502 Leonardo entered the service of Cesare Borgia, the soldier son of Pope Alexander VI, as a military architect and engineer and travelled about with him creating plans and maps of the Papal States in the Romagna and Marche regions, early examples of modern cartography that would have been rare at the time.

On his return to Florence in 1503 Leonardo started work on the Mona Lisa, or La Giocanda - 'the jovial one’ in Italian - perhaps now the most famous painting in the world. The model was thought to be Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a wealthy Florentine silk merchant. 'Mona' was a polite form of polite form of address for a married woman in Italy, a contraction of "ma donna" with a similar meaning to 'Ma’am' or 'Madam' in English.

At around the same time, Leonardo carried out dissections at the Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova as part of his comprehensive study of the human body.

At the age of 65 Leonardo left Italy for good to work for King Francis 1 of France. He designed court festivals and drew up plans for a palace and a garden for the King’s mother while working on his scientific studies and a treatise on painting.

Leonardo died in France in 1519 at the age of 67.

The Last Supper, painted directly on to the wall in the
monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie

Travel tip:

The Last Supper - Il Cenacolo - was painted directly on to the wall of the refectory of the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in the square of the same name in Milan. Leonardo captured the expressions on the faces of the disciples after Christ had uttered the words: “One of you will betray me.” It is necessary to book in advance in order to see the painting and entrance is limited to 25 people at a time for a maximum stay of 15 minutes. For more details, visit www.cenacolo.it.

Travel tip:

A portrait of a man in red chalk in the Royal Library - Biblioteca Reale - in Turin is widely accepted to be a self portrait of Leonardo da Vinci, drawn when he was about 60 years of age. The library, on the ground floor of the Royal Palace in Piazzetta Reale, was founded in 1840 to hold the rare manuscripts collected by members of the House of Savoy over the years.

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Lamberto Dalla Costa - Olympic bobsleigh champion

Fighter pilot who became first Italian to win a Gold medal

Lamberto Dalla Costa is carried by members of
the Italian team after his victory in 1956

Lamberto Dalla Costa, part of the team that brought Italy its first gold medal for Olympic bobsleigh, was born on this day in 1920 in Crespano del Grappa, a small town in the Treviso province of the Veneto situated where the Venetian plain meets the foothills of the Alps at its northern edge.

Dalla Costa was an adventurous individual with a passion for flying. He joined the Italian Air Force as a volunteer during World War Two and subsequently became a combat pilot who rose eventually to the rank of air marshall.  His exploits in action earned him a silver medal for valour.

When Italy was chosen to host the 1956 Winter Olympics at Cortina d'Ampezzo they were determined to have a successful Games and were looking for improvement in bobsleigh in particular, having competed in all six previous Olympics without reaching the podium.

There was a tradition of looking towards the military to provide the crews for the bobsleigh events and Dalla Costa was selected, even though he had never been involved with high-level competitive sport, after demonstrating the right level of skill and discipline.

It was an advantage when the Games came round that Dalla Costa and his colleagues were able to practise on the Cortina d'Ampezzo track, gaining familiarity with every quirk.  Partnered with another air force recruit, Major Giacomo Conti, from Palermo in Sicily, Dalla Costa registered the fastest times in all four heats and won the two-man bob event by more than a second from the second Italian crew of Eugenio Monti and Renzo Alvera.

Evening in Cortina d'Ampezzo, looking
towards Campanile Filippo and Giacomo

It turned out to be Italy's only gold at the Games.  Monti won silver in both the two and four-man events and went on to become one of Italy's most successful Winter Olympians, winning six medals in total, including two golds at the 1968 Games in Grenoble.

Dalla Costa and Conti's success inspired a new surge of interest in bobsleigh in Italy and for the four winter Games Italy was the dominant country, collecting nine medals in the two events.

Already approaching his 36th birthday, Dalla Costa competed for another year but retired after the 1957 World Championships.  He was awarded the gold medal by the Italian Olympic Committee in 1965. He died in 1982 at the age of 62 in Bergamo.

Travel tip:

Known as the Queen of the Dolomites, Cortina d'Ampezzo began to attract visitors from Germany and Britain as early as the late 19th century but it was thanks to the 1956 Winter Olympics that Cortina d'Ampezzo took off as a favourite destination for winter holidays. It became popular with the rich and famous, with Sophia Loren, Clark Gable, David Niven, Ingrid Bergman, Brigitte Bardot, Liz Taylor and Richard Burton and Alberto Sordi among the celebrity regulars. During the winter months, the population soars from 6,000 to 50,000. The 50th anniversary of the 1956 Games was celebrated this year with a two-day festival called Cortinissima 56.

The military monument on the summit of Monte Grappa
(Photo: Nikmilano CC BY-SA 3.0)

Travel tip:

Crespano del Grappa is a small town situated in the shadow of Monte Grappa, part of what is known as the pre-Alps, to the north of the Venetian plain, rising to 1,175 metres above sea level.  Monte Grappa was the setting for decisive battles during World War One and is now the site of a vast military cemetery, Cimo Grappa.  At the highest point is a monument, opened in 1935, in which are housed the remains of some 12,615 soldiers, with as many as 10,332 unknown.  The monument is composed of five concentric rings positioned one above the other so as to form a pyramid. At the top is the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Grappa.

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