Library of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei and the Corsiniana

Description

Federico Cesi (1586–1630), a man with a keen interest in the natural sciences and botany, founded the Accademia dei Lincei in 1603 together with three friends (Giovanni Heckius, Francesco Stelluti, and Anastasio de Filiis). It was named for the lynx’s keen eyesight, a trait that became the symbol of this society of scholars. The institution’s purpose was to conduct research in all fields related to the natural sciences. As for the library, its origins date back to a donation of books that Pope Clement XII made to his nephew, Cardinal Neri Maria Corsini.