Presentation
The Specola Museum of Astronomy in Bologna is housed in the historic astronomical Tower built between 1712 and 1726 on the initiative of count Luigi Ferdinando Marsili (1658-1730). Situated above Palazzo Poggi, today the seat of the University of Bologna, the Tower was designed by Giuseppe Antonio Torri (1655-1713) and completed by Carlo Francesco Dotti (1670-1759). Inaugurated in 1727, the Specola remained the university’s only observatory until 1936, when the Loiano Observatory was built thanks to Guido Horn d’Arturo (1879-1967), director at the time. The Specola Tower continued to house the University of Bologna’s Institute of Astronomy and it was here that Horn built the first tessellated mirror in history. Since the 1990s, the Tower has been gradually transformed into a museum, which today is home to an extraordinary collection of scientific instruments that tell the story of the evolution of observation and knowledge of the cosmos and the Earth from the 13th to the 20th centuries. Today, the exhibition is spread over four floors and ends on the panoramic terrace, from where you can enjoy an impressive view of the city of Bologna.
