344
A preliminary examination of the archives of astronomers at the Osservatorio
Astronomico di Roma (Astronomical Observatory of Rome) was carried out by
A. De Simone and G. Monaco in 1996–1997 (De Simone 1996–1997), but a complete reordering and integral inventory of the historical archive of the Rome
Observatory only occurred in 2016, making available the 3313 pages of documents
that they had previously described
1
. This patrimony consists of material from various sources and linked to two main documentary cores: the archive of the Roman
College and the archive of the Astronomical Observatory of Rome. Within these
documentary funds, a complete sub-archive dedicated to Angelo Secchi can be
found, consisting of 246 files covering a chronological arc that goes from 1842 to
1878, and sorted into Personal Documents, Correspondence, and Scientific
Writings.
2
The correspondence sub-series contains more than 480 letters exchanged
with 260 correspondents over a period from 1844 to 1889. Additionally, in the
Lorenzo Respighi sub-archive of the Capitolium Observatory are preserved 54 letters of A. Secchi to L. Respighi.
Following the inventory and as part of the multi-year project of the Istituto
Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF) for the enhancement of its historical heritage, INAF
has begun to digitize archival documents relating to astronomical observations
made by Italian astronomers in the second half of the nineteenth century. In recent
years, the INAF project has produced digital versions of some rare and valuable
volumes placed in the libraries of Italian observatories and the digital reproduction
of various archival data, such as meteorological observations from Padua made during the years 1725–1804 and the extended time series of solar observations from
Catania and Rome.
These materials are available online at the web site Polvere di stelle: i beni culturali dell’astronomia italiana (Stardust: The Cultural Heritage of Italian
Astronomy)
3
. This web portal presents the INAF’s cultural heritage databases
including collections of archives, libraries, and museums. Stardust allows scholars
to search across the different types of material that make up the historical and scientific collections of INAF, and with digital technology, it is possible to consult the
complete texts of particularly relevant historical volumes. To date, the portal contains the scans and archival descriptions of drawings of sunspots, solar prominences,
solar faculae, and solar spectra obtained between1865 and 1880 by Pietro Tacchini
and held at the Osservatorio astrofisico di Catania (Astrophysical Observatory of
Catania) and the long-period series of solar observations made by Angelo Secchi at
the Osservatorio del Collegio Romano (Roman College Observatory), held today at
1 The inventory of the historical archive of the Astronomical Observatory of Rome, edited by
Monica Grossi and Silvia Trani, was completed in its final version in 2016, thanks also to the collaboration of Francesca Perrone and Susanna Orefice.
2 Fondo Osservatorio del Collegio Romano. Archivi personali dei direttori del Collegio Romano.
Angelo Secchi. http://www.beniculturali.inaf.it/sicap/Opac.aspx?WEB=INAFS&Opac=AD&Sr
cMode=SGER
3 http://www.beniculturali.inaf.it/
A. Gasperini and M. Gargano
A preliminary examination of the archives of astronomers at the Osservatorio
Astronomico di Roma (Astronomical Observatory of Rome) was carried out by
A. De Simone and G. Monaco in 1996–1997 (De Simone 1996–1997), but a complete reordering and integral inventory of the historical archive of the Rome
Observatory only occurred in 2016, making available the 3313 pages of documents
that they had previously described
1
. This patrimony consists of material from various sources and linked to two main documentary cores: the archive of the Roman
College and the archive of the Astronomical Observatory of Rome. Within these
documentary funds, a complete sub-archive dedicated to Angelo Secchi can be
found, consisting of 246 files covering a chronological arc that goes from 1842 to
1878, and sorted into Personal Documents, Correspondence, and Scientific
Writings.
2
The correspondence sub-series contains more than 480 letters exchanged
with 260 correspondents over a period from 1844 to 1889. Additionally, in the
Lorenzo Respighi sub-archive of the Capitolium Observatory are preserved 54 letters of A. Secchi to L. Respighi.
Following the inventory and as part of the multi-year project of the Istituto
Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF) for the enhancement of its historical heritage, INAF
has begun to digitize archival documents relating to astronomical observations
made by Italian astronomers in the second half of the nineteenth century. In recent
years, the INAF project has produced digital versions of some rare and valuable
volumes placed in the libraries of Italian observatories and the digital reproduction
of various archival data, such as meteorological observations from Padua made during the years 1725–1804 and the extended time series of solar observations from
Catania and Rome.
These materials are available online at the web site Polvere di stelle: i beni culturali dell’astronomia italiana (Stardust: The Cultural Heritage of Italian
Astronomy)
3
. This web portal presents the INAF’s cultural heritage databases
including collections of archives, libraries, and museums. Stardust allows scholars
to search across the different types of material that make up the historical and scientific collections of INAF, and with digital technology, it is possible to consult the
complete texts of particularly relevant historical volumes. To date, the portal contains the scans and archival descriptions of drawings of sunspots, solar prominences,
solar faculae, and solar spectra obtained between1865 and 1880 by Pietro Tacchini
and held at the Osservatorio astrofisico di Catania (Astrophysical Observatory of
Catania) and the long-period series of solar observations made by Angelo Secchi at
the Osservatorio del Collegio Romano (Roman College Observatory), held today at
1 The inventory of the historical archive of the Astronomical Observatory of Rome, edited by
Monica Grossi and Silvia Trani, was completed in its final version in 2016, thanks also to the collaboration of Francesca Perrone and Susanna Orefice.
2 Fondo Osservatorio del Collegio Romano. Archivi personali dei direttori del Collegio Romano.
Angelo Secchi. http://www.beniculturali.inaf.it/sicap/Opac.aspx?WEB=INAFS&Opac=AD&Sr
cMode=SGER
3 http://www.beniculturali.inaf.it/
A. Gasperini and M. Gargano