Enrico Piraino of Mandralisca and the scientific community of malacologists members of the Gioeni's Academy in Catania

Homage to Nico Marino

Abstract

The historical context in which the cultural and scientific movements of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries developed in Sicily, the Academies, professional associations, meetings with intellectuals on the Grand Tour and circles of Benedictine scientists, intent on conjugating science with faith, is the background to the studies on Enrico Piraino di Mandralisca and the scientific community of Gioeni zoologists in Catania. This was presented on the occasion of the "Giornata di studio Madonite" in memory of Nico Marino, biographer of Mandralisca, whose 50th anniversary since his death was remembered in 2014. New elements have been added to the ecclectic profile of Mandralisca and the extensive literature, including the work of the Benedictine Gioeni malacologist Giacomo Maggiore, and his figure as a man of science and learning, from his exceptional civil committment to his relationship with the Accademia Gioenia, where he was a member from 29 January 1847 in connection with study relative to the Botanical garden.