Physics Collection

University of Sassari Science Museum

Fisica

The collection currently houses around 150 educational apparatus and laboratory instruments, spanning the fields of Optics, Electromagnetism, Mechanics, and Thermology.

The reform of the educational systems at the University of Sassari in 1765 replaced the old Aristotelian-Thomistic approach of the Spanish era with a clear openness to the rationalist currents of the time, especially Newtonian physics.

Physics was taught in the Faculty of Philosophy and Arts: the experimental demonstrations in the lectures by Giuseppe Gagliardi and Francesco Cetti attracted a large audience, including non-university attendees. The Physics Cabinet dates back to this period and was further expanded in 1831 with a donation from King Carlo Felice, some instruments of which are still preserved.

Experimental Physics was one of the fundamental and introductory subjects for the courses in Medicine and Surgery. From the early 20th century, the discipline was taught by students of the Roman school of Pietro Blaserna and those of the Bolognese school of Augusto Righi. An inventory from the years 1882-1936 reports the presence of 1,723 instruments and books: most of the materials exhibited in our museum date back to this period.

The collection now includes about 150 educational apparatus and laboratory instruments, covering the areas of Optics, Electromagnetism, Mechanics, and Thermology. Another set of instruments from the 1950s testifies to the evolution of technologies in the post-World War II era.

From animazionedesign Laboratory