Location:
exhibition halls
The
exhibition halls of the Darwin Museum will be decorated with engravings of
Ulisse Aldrovandi (1522–1605), an Italian Renaissance scientist and father of
natural science. The range of interests of Ulisse Aldrovandi was unusually
wide: philosophy and logic, mathematics and law, anatomy and botany. He studied
in Bologna, Padua, Rome and Pisa. He had gathered the richest collection of
natural science objects, later it was bequeathed to the Senate of Bologna. He founded
the Botanical Gardens of Bologna. But most of all Aldrovandi is known as the
author of 13 volumes of richly illustrated edition of natural history. The
monumental work is dedicated to birds, insects, mollusks and crustaceans, fish,
quadrupeds and snakes, minerals and plants. In addition to real animals, U.
Aldrovandi described mythological creatures: dragons, basilisks and sea
monsters. Copies of engravings from Aldrovandi's books kept in the funds of the
Darwin Museum will be presented at the exhibition.