The 4th International Laboratory for the History of Science
Art, Science and Techniques of Drafting in the Renaissance
24 May - 1 June 2001
Florence and Vinci, Italy

Organized by Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza


A Visit to the Stanza delle Matematiche

At the end of the century, the mathematical instruments were moved to the newly constructed Uffizi where two rooms were designated for the scientific collection: the "terrazza", on whose walls Stefano Buonsignori painted two huge chorographies of the domains of Florence and Siena; and the "stanza delle matematiche", on whose vault the painter Giulio Parigi represented the most important instruments of the collection and the mathematical 'arts' for which they were used (painting, cartography, topography, fortifications, astronomy, mechanics, etc.). Some of the scenes illustrate instruments at work, such as Durer's window while drawing a fortress or Baldassarre Lanci's "distanziometro" while measuring a large tract of land. This visit promises a vivid exposure to the practical applications of linear perspective and other drawing methods in the sixteenth century.

Selected bibliography:
Wolfram Prinz, "Informazione di Filippo Pigafetta al Serenissimo di Toscana per una stanza da piantare lo studio di Architettura militare", in P. Barocchi and G. Ragionieri eds., Gli Uffizi: quattro secoli di una galleria, Proceedings of the Conference, Florence 20-24 September 1982, Florence, Leo S. Olschki, 1983, pp. 343-353.