Clelia Durazzo Grimaldi (1760–1830), also known as Clelia Durazzo, was a botanist and

marchesa A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman w ...

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Biography

She was the daughter of Giacomo Filippo Durazzo and Maddalena Pallavicini. Her father was a member of one of the most illustrious and aristocratic Genoese families, as well as a notable naturalist and bibliophile in his own right. After her marriage to Giuseppe Grimaldi of the

House of Grimaldi The House of Grimaldi ( , also , , ) is the current reigning house of the Principality of Monaco. The house was founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa and became the ruling house of Monaco when Francesco Grimaldi captured Monaco in 1297 ...

, she dedicated herself to the study of

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

, and in 1794 established a private

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

, the Giardino botanico Clelia Durazzo Grimaldi on the grounds of her residence, the

Villa Durazzo-Pallavicini The Villa Durazzo-Pallavicini is a villa with notable 19th-century park in the English romantic style and a small botanical garden. The villa now houses the Museo di Archeologia Ligure, and is located at Via Pallavicini 13, immediately next to the ...

. She also collected some 5,000 plant specimens in a

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

, subsequently donated to the Civico Museo Doria di Storia Naturale di Genova.

Notes and references

*Angela Valenti Durazzo, ''I Durazzo da schiavi a dogi della Repubblica di Genova'', Genoa 2004. *Luca Leoncini, ''Da tintoretto a Rubens. Capolavori della Collezione Durazzo'', Skira, Genoa 2004. 19th-century Italian women scientists Women botanists 1760 births 1830 deaths Durazzo Grimaldi, Clelia Nobility from Genoa 18th-century Italian botanists 19th-century Italian botanists 18th-century Italian women scientists Scientists from Genoa {{Italy-botanist-stub