Giovanni Poleni
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Giovanni Poleni (b. Venice, around 1683; d. Padua, Nov., 1761) was a Marquess, physicist, and antiquarian; the son of Marquess Jacopo Poleni. He studied the classics, philosophy, theology, mathematics, and physics. He was appointed, at the age of twenty-five, professor of astronomy at Padua. In 1715 he was assigned to the chair of physics, and in 1719 he succeeded Nicholas II Bernoulli as professor of mathematics. As an expert in hydraulic engineering he was charged by the Venetian Senate with the care of the waters of lower Lombardy and with the constructions necessary to prevent floods. He was also repeatedly called in to decide cases between sovereigns whose states were bordered by waterways.
His knowledge of architecture caused Benedict XIV to call him to Rome in 1748 to examine the cupola of St. Peter's, which was rapidly disintegrating. He promptly indicated the repairs necessary. He also wrote a number of antiquarian dissertations. In 1739 the French Academy of Sciences made him a member, and later the societies of London, Berlin, and St. Petersburg did the same. The city of Padua elected him as magistrate, and after his death erected his statue by Canova. Venice also honoured him by striking a medal.
[edit] Principal works
- Miscellanea (dissertations on physics), Venice, 1709;
- De vorticibus coelestibus, Padua, 1712;
- De motu acquæ mixto, Padua, 1717;
- De castellis per quæ derivantur fluviorum latera convergentia, Padua, 1720;
- Exercitationes Vitruvianæ Venice, 1739;
- Il tiempo di Diana di Efeso (The Temple of Diana at Ephesus); Venice, 1742.
[edit] Sources
- ANON, Memorie per la vita del Signor G. P. (Padua, 1762);
- FOUCHY, Eloge, Mém. de l'ac. des Sc. hist. (Paris, 1763).
- This article incorporates text from the entry Giovanni Poleni in the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913.
